IMAGE  EVALUATION 
TEST  TARGET  (MT-3) 


/. 


{./ 


h 


^-^% 


0*  A^  > 


€f. 


U. 


4k^ 


f/- 


11.25 


■aiM    |2.5 

|50     ■^"        ■■■ 

1.4    11.6 


Photographic 

Sciences 

Corporation 


23  WEST  MAIN  STREET 

WEBSTER,  N.Y.  M5B0 

(716)  872-4S03 


# 


<^ 


^ 


4/. 


<" 


CIHM/ICMH 

Microfiche 

Series. 


CIHM/ICMH 
Collection  de 
microfiches. 


Canadian  Institute  for  Historical  Microreproductions  /  Institut  Canadian  de  microreproductions  historiques 


Technical  and  Bibliographic  Notes/Notes  techniques  et  bibliographiques 


Th( 
to 


The  Institute  has  attempted  to  obtain  the  best 
original  copy  available  for  filming.  Features  of  this 
copy  which  may  be  bibliographically  unique, 
which  may  alter  any  of  the  images  in  the 
reproduction,  or  which  may  significantly  change 
the  usual  method  of  filming,  are  checked  below. 


D 


D 


n 


D 


Coloured  covers/ 
Couverture  de  couleur 


I      I    Covers  damaged/ 


Couverture  endommagie 


Covers  restored  and/or  laminated/ 
Couverture  restaurte  et/ou  pellicula 


□    Cover  title  missing/ 
Le 


titre  de  couverture  manque 

loured  maps/ 
Cartes  giographiques  en  couleur 

Coloured  ink  (i.e.  other  than  blue 

Encre  de  couleur  (i.e.  autre  que  bleue  ou  noire) 


I      I    Coloured  maps/ 

I      I    Coloured  ink  (i.e.  other  than  blue  or  black)/ 


I      I    Coloured  plates  and/or  illustrations/ 


D 


Planches  et/ou  illustrations  en  couleur 

Bound  with  other  material/ 
Reli6  avec  d'autres  documents 

Tight  binding  may  cause  shadows  or  distortion 
along  interior  margin/ 

La  re  liure  serrde  peut  causer  de  I'ombre  ou  de  la 
distortion  le  long  de  la  marge  intArleure 

Blank  leaves  added  during  restoration  may 
appear  within  the  text.  Whenever  possible,  these 
have  been  omitted  from  filming/ 
II  se  peut  que  certalnes  pages  blanches  ajouttes 
lors  d'une  restauration  apparaissent  dans  le  texte, 
mais,  iorsque  cela  itait  possible,  ces  pages  n'ont 
pas  it6  filmtes. 

Additional  comments:/ 
Commentaires  supplAmentaires: 


L'Institut  a  microfilm*  le  meilleur  exemplaire 
qu'il  lui  a  6t6  possible  de  se  procurer.  Les  details 
de  cet  exemplaire  qui  sont  peut-Atre  uniques  du 
point  de  vue  bibliographique,  qui  peuvent  modifier 
une  image  reproduite,  ou  qui  peuvent  exiger  une 
modification  dans  le  methods  normale  de  f iimage 
sont  Indiqute  ci-dessous. 


n 

n 

□ 

n 
n 

D 
D 


Coloured  pages/ 
Pages  de  couleur 

Pages  damaged/ 
Pages  endommagtes 

Pages  restored  and/or  laminated/ 
Pages  restaur6es  et/ou  pelllculAes 

Pages  discoloured,  stained  or  foxed/ 
Pages  d6coiortes,  tachettes  ou  piqutes 

Pages  detached/ 
Pages  ditachtes 

Showthrough/ 
Transparence 

Quality  of  print  varies/ 
Quality  in^gale  de  I'impression 

Includes  supplementary  material/ 
Comprend  du  materiel  supplimentaire 

Only  edition  available/ 
Seule  Edition  disponlble 

Pages  wholly  or  partially  obscured  by  errata 
slips,  tissues,  etc.,  have  been  ref limed  to 
ensure  the  best  possible  image/ 
Les  pages  totalement  ou  partiellement 
obscurcles  par  un  fouillet  d'errata,  une  pelure, 
etc.,  ont  M  fllmtes  A  nouveau  de  fa9on  A 
obtenir  la  meilleure  image  possible. 


Th 
po 
of 
filr 


Oii 
bei 
th4 
sic 
oti 
firi 
sic 
or 


Th 
8h( 
TIf 
wli 

Ml 
dif 
em 

bei 

rig 
re< 
mi 


This  item  is  filmed  at  the  reduction  ratio  checked  below/ 

Ce  document  est  fllmA  au  taux  de  reduction  indlquA  cl-dessous. 

IPX 14X 18X 22X 

I  I  \  TTI  I  I  I  I  \  I  I 


26X 


aox 


12X 


16X 


20X 


24X 


28X 


32X 


The  copy  filmed  here  has  been  reproduced  thanks 
to  the  generosity  of: 

Library  of  the  Public 
Archives  of  Canada 


L'exemplaire  filmt  f ut  reproduit  grAce  d  la 
gAnirosit*  de: 

La  bibliothdque  des  Archives 
pubiiques  du  Canada 


The  images  appearing  here  are  the  best  quality 
possible  considering  the  condition  and  legibility 
of  the  original  copy  and  in  Iteeping  with  the 
filming  contract  specifications. 


Las  images  suivantes  ont  6tA  reproduites  avec  le 
plus  grand  soin,  compte  tenu  de  la  condition  at 
de  la  netteti  de  l'exemplaire  film6,  et  en 
conformity  avec  les  conditions  du  contrat  de 
filmage. 


Original  copies  in  printed  paper  covers  are  filmed 
beginning  with  the  front  cover  and  ending  on 
the  last  page  with  a  printed  or  illustrated  impres- 
sion, or  the  back  cover  when  appropriate.  All 
other  original  copies  are  filmed  beginning  on  the 
first  page  with  a  printed  or  illustrated  impres- 
sion, and  ending  on  the  last  page  with  a  printed 
or  illustrated  impression. 


The  last  recorded  frame  on  each  microfiche 
shall  contain  the  symbol  ^»>  (meaning  "CON- 
TINUED"), or  the  symbol  y  (meaning  "END"), 
whichever  applies. 

Maps,  plates,  charts,  etc.,  may  be  filmed  at 
different  reduction  ratios.  Those  too  large  to  be 
entirely  included  in  one  exposure  are  filmed 
beginning  in  the  upper  left  hand  corner,  left  to 
right  and  top  to  bottom,  as  many  frames  as 
required.  The  following  diagrams  illustrate  the 
method: 


Les  exemplaires  originaux  dont  la  couverture  en 
papier  est  imprimte  sont  fiim^s  en  commenpant 
par  le  premier  plat  et  en  terminant  soit  par  la 
dernlAre  page  qui  comporte  une  empreinte 
d'impression  ou  d'illustration,  soit  par  le  second 
plat,  salon  le  cas.  Tous  les  autres  exemplaires 
originaux  sont  filmte  en  commenpant  par  la 
premiere  page  qui  comporte  une  empreinte 
d'impression  ou  d'illustration  et  en  terminant  par 
la  dernlAre  page  qui  comporte  une  telle 
empreinte. 

Un  des  symboles  suivants  apparaitra  sur  la 
dernidre  image  de  cheque  microfiche,  selon  le 
cas:  le  symbols  — ►  signifie  "A  SUIVRE  ",  le 
symbols  V  signifie  "FIN  ". 

Les  cartes,  planches,  tableaux,  etc..  peuvent  dtre 
filmte  d  des  taux  de  reduction  diffdrents. 
Lorsque  le  document  est  trop  grand  pour  dtre 
reproduit  en  un  seul  ciichi.  11  est  film6  A  partir 
de  I'angle  supArieur  gauche,  de  gauche  d  droite, 
et  de  haut  en  bas.  en  prenant  le  nombre 
d'images  n6cessaire.  Les  diagrammes  suivants 
illustrent  la  mithoda. 


1 

2 

3 

1      t      ' 

r    ,t 

a 

4 

5 

e 

32X 


T 


TUCKER'S    VOYAGE 


8 


LAI 


FIVE    MONTHS 


ijf 


LABRADOR  AND   NEWFOUNDLAND, 


During  tlie  Summer  of  18:38. 


By  EPHRAIM  W.  TUCKER. 


CONCORD: 


:  I] 


ISRAEL  S.  BOYD  and  WILLIAM  WHITE. 


'*n.- 


1839. 


Entered  according  to  Act  of  Congress,  in  the  year  1839, 

By  Ephraim  W.  T.ucker, 
In  the  Clerk's  Office  of  the  District  of  New-Hampshire. 


1  i  ' 


^ 


rs 


1 


*  t 


!  I 


g 


PREFACE 


When  a  new  publication  is  offered  to  the 
reading  community,  the  inquiry  naturally  arises, 
who  is  the  author  ?  and,  what  are  his  motives  in 
writing?  Both  these  inquiries  I  will  endeavor 
to  answer  as  briefly  as  possible. 

In  the  spring  of  1834,  agreeably  to  previous 
impressions  of  duty,  I  entered  upon  a  course  of 
study,  preparatory  to  the  work  of  the  gospel 
ministry.  Having  no  friends,  whose  worldly  cir- 
cumstances enabled  them  to  afford  me  the 
means  of  pursuing  an  education,  I  was  thrown 
entirely  upon  my  own  resources.  In  the  au-. 
tumn  of  that  year,  my  parents,  who  had  been  re- 
siding at  Ogden,  in  New-York,  attracted  by  the 
hopes  of  better  advantages  in  the  west,  removed 
to  Toledo,  in  Ohio,  and  I  was  left,  at  the  age  of 


VI 


PREFACE. 


■-.I- 


ii 
M 


sixteen,  to  pursue  my  own  way  in  the  world,  ex- 
posed to  its  dangers  and  temptations.  My  pur- 
pose, however,  remaining  unshaken,  I  devoted 
myself  assiduously  to  study,  and  having  become 
prepared  for  admission  to  the  Hamilton  Institute 
in  New-York,  I  engaged  in  a  district  school  du- 
ring the  winter  of  1836,  in  order  to  provide  the 
means  of  attending  that  seminary,  in  the  follow- 
ing season.  Before  I  had  remained  one  month, 
however,  in  this  occupation,  my  health  became 
so  precarious,  that  I  had  to  abandon  my  school 
and  studies,  and  was  confined  to  my  room  dur- 
ing most  of  the  winter.  In  the  spring  of  1835, 
in  the  hope  of  regaining  my  health,  I  visited  my 
friends  at  Toledo  ;  and  during  the  summer  so  far 
recovered  as  to  be  able  to  renew  my  studies.  In 
the  autumn,  having  been  approved  to  preach,  I 
entered  upon  the  calling  so  dear  to  my  heart ; 
but  in  November  following,  I  was  again  prostra- 
ted by  disease,  and  confined  to  my  room  for  the 
ten  months  following. 

In  the  spring  of  1838,  at  the  urgent  advice  of 
physicians,  who  considered  it  as  my  only  remain- 
ing means  of  regaining  health,  I  was  induced  to 
undertake  a  voyage  at  sea.  On  repairing  to  Bos- 


FREFACE. 


Vll 


ton,  I  met  with  captain  S.  R.,  who  was  to  sail 
in  a  staunch  schooner  as  early  as  the  20th  of 
May,  and  engaged  passage  with  him  to  the  fish- 
mg  grounds  of  Newfoundland  and  Labrador. 
The  experiment  has  proved  a  successful  one,  and 
my  health  is  greatly  improved. 

The  result  of  my  observations,  during  five 
months  absence,  is  given  in  the  following  pages. 
Passing  amid  scenes  entirely  new  to  me,  in  a  cli- 
mate rigid  but  healthy,  and  among  a  race  of 
men,  of  whose  characters,  persons,  and  pursuits, 
I  had  never  formed  any  adequate  conception,  I 
determined  to  note  down  such  facts  and  incidents 
as  might  be  of  service  to  me  on  my  return. 
Notwithstanding  the  great  number  of  men  from 
New-England  engaged  in  one  way  or  another  in 
the  fisheries,  very  few  in  the  interior  of  the  coun- 
try are  well  informed  on  the  particulars  of  that 
vast  and  lucrative  business.  Nor  are  they  gen- 
erally better  informed  as  to  the  manners  and  cus- 
toms of  the  people  of  Newfoundland  and  Lab- 
rador, or  the  general  features  and  appearance  of 
those  cold  and  sterile  regions.  I  have  endeav- 
ored to  present  in  the  following  pages,  a  faithful 
description  of  the  inhabitants,  both  natives  and 


\lll 


PREFACE. 


1.: 


!•. 


I 


whiles,  and  of  their  condition  as  respects  gener- 
al character,  information,  and  morals.  It  will 
be  found  to  be  low  in  the  scale  of  civilization. 
It  will  be  seen  that  a  great  field  is  there  open  for 
the  labors  of  the  apostles  of  temperance,  the 
missionaries  of  the  Cross,  and  the  pioneers  of 
education  and  morals.  And  if  the  humble  nar- 
rative which  the  author  now  presents  to  the  pub- 
lic, shall  be  the  means  of  drawing  the  attention 
of  christians  and  philanthropists  to  a  dark,  cold, 
and  benighted  region  of  the  earth,  so  that  any 
substantial  good  may  be  done  to  the  humblest 
individual  of  our  race,  the  warmest  hopes  of  the 
author,  in  this  little  volume,  will  be  realized. 

E.  W.  TUCKER. 
March,  1839. 


% 


r- 
ill 
n. 
lor 
le 
of 
ir- 
b- 

311 

d, 

!St 

he 


CONTENTS 


CHAPTER 


^Rfe 


Departure  from  the  harbor  of  Boston. — Ludicrous  blunder 
of  a  landsman.— -Accommodations  of  a  schooner. — Sick- 
ness  at    sea. — Diaitiftl^^s    of  New-Britain.— Dangerous 
situation,  and  fortunawPfccape. — Stories  of  shipwreck.—- 
■    Cause  of  departure  fiCopjp^  course. — First  sight  of  New- 
\   foundland. — A  Sparrow>-^S|iiilK)ls  of  porpoises. — Scenery 
;    at  Boone-Bay.— <Diseinbarka%ii.  13 


CHAPTER    U. 


Welcome  reception. — Characterof  the  shore  inhabitants ,  and 
the  nature  of  their  business. — Trade  and  pursuits. — Great 
importance  of  the  fisheries.— Soil  and  productions  of  New- 

\  foundland. — Effects  of  the  climate. — Severity  of  the  win- 
ters.— St.  Johns,  the  capital. — Low  state  of  education,  re- 
ligion and  morals. — Strife  between  differing  sects— Pun- 

■    ishmentof  a  newspaper  editor. — Prevalence  of  intempcr- 


CONTENTS. 

ance. — ^Trade  with  the  natives  of  the  interior. — ^Thc  Mic- 
macs  and  Mountaineers  :   their  habits,  dispositions    and 

amusements. — Indian  dances  and  revelry.  31 


CHAPTER    III. 


Hunting  expeditions. — Animals  of  the  chase.— Frauds  of  the 
fur-traders. — Englishman's  standard  of  avoirdupois.— En- 
thusiasm of  the  hunters. — Excursion  to  the  mountains. — 
Adventure. — Marriage  ceremonies.— Mode  of  redressing 
grievances. — ^Disposition  of  the  inhabitants ;  their  kindness 
towards  one  another ;  their  attachment  to  the  Newfound- 

_^^r  land  dog.  j,.  53 


CHAPTER    IV. 


V 


Extent  of  the  fisheries. — ^Rights  pM^e  Americans.-— Tribute 
to  the  character  of  New-!^^i||uid  fishermen. — Herring 
fishery. — Cod  fishery  upon  tii^jMUik8.---Coast  aa^  c^.Qre 
fisheries. — Statistics.— Graviis  of  fishermen 


CHAPTER    V. 

'\         . 

Departure  from  Boone  bay.— Mound  near  Shallow  bay.—- 
Little  settlement  at  Cowhead. — Sails  set  for  Labrador.— 
Straits  of  Bellisle. — Islands  of  icej  their  appearance  and  vast 
extent. — First  view  of  the  Labrador  coast. — Sterility  of  the 
soil.-- Vegetable  Productions.— Esquimaux  burial  place.— 

-  .Ancient  custom  towards  the  sick.  81) 


CONTENTS. 


XI 


CHAPTER    VL 


White  inhabitants  of  Labrador ;  their  character  and  pursuits. 
—Tenure  of  property. — Animals  and  birds  of  the  penin- 
sula.— Eggs  on  Mecatina  isles. — Disputes  of  the  Nova- 
Scotia  and  Yankee  fishermen.— Manner  of  taking  seals  ; 
and  extent  of  the  fishery. — Mode  of  constructing  habita- 
tions.— Character  and  occupation  of  females.— Prevalence 
of  intemperance. — Sagacity  and  value  of  the  Esquimaux 
dog.  106 


CHAPTER    VIL 


Health  of  Labrador.— Account  of  the  natives.*— Northern 
Indians ',  their  manners  and  customs  ;  their  doctors  or  con- 
jurors J  neglect  of  the  sick  and  the  dead }  singular  tra- 
ditions.— Description  of  the  dress,manners  and  customs  of 
the  Esquimaux  Indians;  their  habitations  ;  general  improv- 
idence ,*  superstitious  belief,  and  universal  ignorance.    12.3 


CHAPTER  VIII. 


Preparation  for  return  to  Yankee  land. —  Gale  at  sea. — An- 
chorage at  Boone  Bay. — St.  John's  islands  :  natural  curi- 
osity, known  as  "Jacob's  Well." — Departure. — Storm. — 
Arrival  at  Gabarus  bay  in  Breton  island. — Sydney.— De- 
scription of  the  ancient  fortress  of  Louisbourg  j  its  present 
desolation.— Departure  from  the  bay.— Arrival  at  the'*home 
of  the  Pilgrims."— Conclusion.  143 


.jt0 


lab: 


>ii 


a 


f.#- 


*# 


m% 


Departui 
of  a  1 
ness  I 
situati 
Cause 
fourtdl 
at  Boc 

On 
edin  1 
mastei 
The  I 
laden 
ting  t( 
was  n 
the  vc 
ous,  u 
con  sis 
a  you] 


FIVE  MONTHS 


IN 


LABRADOR  AND  NEWFOUNDLAND. 


CHAPTER  I. 


I.-; 
'f.' 


Departure  from  the  harbor  of  Boston. — Ludicrous  blunder 
of  a  landsman.—- Accommodations  of  a  schooner.-^Sick- 
ness  at  sea. — Dismal  fogs  of  New-Britain.— Dangerous 
situation,  and  fortunate  escape  .-^-Stories  of  shipwreck.—* 
Cause  of  departure  from  our  course. — First  sight  of  New- 
foundland.— A  Sparrow. — Gambols  of  porpoises. — Scenery 
at  Boone-Bay.— Disembarkation. 

On  the  nineteenth  of  May,  1838, 1  embark- 
ed in  the  schooner  Alfred,  of  Duxbury,  S.  R. 
master,  on  a  voyage  to  the  coast  of  Labrador* 
The  balmy  breezes  of  the  opening  spring, 
laden  with  their  vernal  perfumes,  so  exhilara- 
ting to  all,  seemed  peculiarly  so  to  me,  as  I 
was  now,  for  the  first  time,  trusting  myself  to 
the  voyage,  always  arduous,  and  often  peril* 
ous,  upQn  the  bosom  of  the  deep.  Our  crew 
consisted  of  eleven  persons,  including  myself, 
a  young  man  from  Indiana,  and  another  from 

Al 


I 


f. 


ilM 


14 


FIVE    MONTHS    IN    LABRADOR 


i^. 


New- York — the  two  latter,  like  myself,  labor- 
ing under  ill  health,  having  resolved  upon  the 
voyage,  in  the  hope  of  deriving  benefit  from 
a  change  of  climate,  scene  and  occupation. 
As  we  sailed  out  of  the  harbor  of  Boston,  the 
sea  being  scarcely  ruffled  by  the  gentle  breezes 
that  swelled  the  sails  of  the  Alfred,  I  climb- 
ed to  her  mast  head,  to  cast  a  lingering  look 
at  the  delightful  city,  perched  upon  its  triple 
hills,  so  famed  in  New-England  annals  ;  and 
there  I  gazed  upon  her  receding  domes  and 
spires,  until  the  lofty  cupola  of  the  state- 
house  itself  faded  from  the  sight.  The  scen- 
ery about  Boston  and  among  the  islands  in  the 
harbor,  at  this  season,  so  strikingly  beautiful, 
I  need  not  attempt  to  portray,  as  most  of 
those  who  will  spend  a  brief  hour  over  my  un- 
pretending narrative,  have  probably  seen  and 
admired  the  rich  landscapes,  which  render 
Boston,  with  its  charming  villages  adjacent, 
one  of  the  most  beautiful  places  in  the  world. 
A  voyage  at  sea,  to  a  landsman,  is  some- 
thing like  taking  a  leap  in  the  dark — so  new 
and  strange  are  all  things  aroundnjj^im. — 
When  the  vessel  first  begins  to  feel  tBte|great 
swells  ot  the  ever-heaving  ocean,  -and  vlhe 
last  glimpse  of  "  native  land,"  is  seen,  ih  spte 


AND    NEWFOUNDLAND. 


15 


of  all  his  philosophy,  the  adventurer  will  feel 
a  throbbing  at  the  heart,  and  the  images  of 
home  and  of  friends,  from  whom  he  is  sailing 
far  away,  will  throng  before  him.  By  de- 
crees, however,  this  mood  of  the  mind  is 
changed.  The  novelty  of  his  new  situation, 
and  the  cares  and  bustle  of  the  little  bark, 
careering  over  the  billows,  gradually  recon- 
cile him  to  his  new  situation. 

The  inexperienced  landsman,  on  board  a 
fisherman,  on  hearing  the  odd  and  awkward 
sea  phrases  of  the  captain  and  crew,  is  apt  to 
look  upon  them  as  an  ignorant  set  of  fellows ; 
but  he  soon  finds  his  mistake.  My  own  blun- 
ders in  this  particular  were  sometimes  ludi- 
crous, and  procured  me  not  unfrequently  the 
laugh  of  the  crew.  When  I  first  heard  them 
using  the  most  uncouth  phrases,  accompan- 
ied by  some  rude  and  unmeaning  jest,  or 
irreverent  oath,  I  pitied  their  folly,  and  attrib- 
uted it  to  their  gross  ignorance.  I  imme- 
diately set  about  correcting  what  I  supposed 
to  be  their  erroneous  nautical  phrases,  and 
trying  to  persuade  them  to  abandon  terms, 
which  I  considered  foolish  and  vulgar  in  the 
extreme.  But  I  soon  found  that  I  was  labor- 
ing to  very  little  purpose.     Indeed  I  was  giv- 


,^ 


16 


FIVE    MONTHS    IN    LABRADOR 


en  pretty  significantly  to  understand,  that 
this  kind  of  advice  and  remonstrance  would 
not  answer.  They  would  have  me  to  know, 
they  did  not  want  a  landsman  to  instruct 
them,  contrary  to  the  practices  of  their  whole 
lives.  They  "  knew  a  thing  or  two,"  and 
did'nt  want  the  palaver  of  a  land-lubber !  So 
I  found  it  safe  to  wink  at  practices  I  could 
not  approve,  and  affect  to  join  at  times  in 
rude  merriment,  for  which  I  had  little  relish. 
When  called  upon  to  perform  some  act  of 
duty,  the  blunders  I  committed  were  some- 
times quite  ludicrous.  When  I  thought  I 
had  mastered  sufficiently  the  lingo  of  the 
quarter-deck,  to  know  the  jib  from  the  fore- 
sail, I  determined  one  day  to  try  my  skill. — 
The  captain  gave  the  order,  ''  down  haul  the 
flying  jihJ^  Prompt  to  obey,  I  caught  hold 
of  the  fore-sail  halyards,  loosed  it,  and  down 
came  the  iore-sail,  instead  of  the  jib,  to  my 
utter  amazement.  The  captain,  observing 
my  confusion,  forbore  to  censure  me,  as  it 
was  my  first  experiment,  but  I  earned  of 
course  the  hearty  ridicule  of  the  whole  crew. 
The  captain  good  humoredly  reminded  me, 
that  I  must  always  remember  to  pull  the 
right  rope,  if  I  expected*  to  make  an  active 


AND    NEWFOUNDLAND. 


17 


tar — a  piece  of  advice,  containing  a  moral, 
applicable  to  very  many  situations  in  life. 

For  the  benefit  of  such  as  are  unacquainted 
with  a  sea-faring  life,  I  w'\\\  give  a  description 
of  the  domestic  accommodations  of  our  little 
floating  castle,  which  is  a  fair  sample  of  others 
belonging  to  the  class.  Our  sofas  and  settees, 
consisted  of  two  small  wooden  chests,  nailed 
fast  to  the  cabin  floor.  Chairs  we  had  none. 
Our  table  furniture  was  very  economically 
arranged,  so  as  not  to  interfere  with  the  room 
of  the  vessel,  or  the  profits  of  the  voyage. — 
At  the  commencement,  each  one  of  us  had 
allotted  to  him  such  implements  as  seemed  to 
be  indispensable.  These  implements,  it  is 
customary  for  each  to  mark  with  the  initials 
of  his  name,  or  otherwise,  and  to  him  they 
belong  during  the  voyage,  and  he  must  take 
care  of  them — for  if  he  chance  to  lose  them, 
he  must  inevitably  go  without.  A  tin  cup 
and  basin,  a  knife,  fork  and  spoon,  fell  to^my 
share  in  the  equipment ;  and  being  so  few^i  in 
number,  I  soon  learned  to  use  them  with 
promptitude  and  despatch.  Madame  Trol- 
lope,  or  some  other  English  trollop,  has  giv- 
en an  account  of  the  customary  rush  made 
by  the  yankees  on  board  of  steam-boats,   or 

a2 


18 


FIVE    MONTHS    IN    LABRADOR 


in  hotels,  when  the  bell  strikes  for  dinner.— 
It  is  very  much  the  same  on  board  a  fishing 
schooner*  Sometimes  a  choice  dish  of  soup, 
or  a  prime  chowder  would  give  rise  to  unu- 
sual dexterity  in  reaching  the  table  of  the 
Alfred.  Perhaps  a  little  delay  in  seeking  his 
apparatus,  would  bring  some  one  in  the  rear 
at  the  "  crowning  dish,"  and  this  would  gen- 
erally give  rise  to  sour  looks  on  his  part ;  and 
the  disappointed  sailor's  ejaculation,  "  O  — 
Vm  dished," — or  "  I'm  sewed  up  !" — usu- 
ally set  the  rest  into  a  roar  of  laughter.  Such 
practical  jokes  very  often  cost  some  one  of 
the  crew  a  good  dinner,  and  angry  looks  for 
a  whole  day.  But  the  hungry  sailor,  thus 
cheated  out  of  his  dinner,  becomes  perhaps  the 
aggressor  in  his  turn,  and  enjoys  the  fun  apd 
frolic  as  heartily  as  any  of  his  comrades.  In 
reference  to  a  cook  at  sea,  it  is  an  old  saying 
among  sailors,  that  the  Lord  provides  us  meat, 
but  the  devil  sends  the  cooks.  No  one  will 
deny  the  former  part  of  the  sentiment,  how- 
ever great  the  perversion  of  Providence  in 
the  latter  clause  of  the  sailor's  logic ;  yet  all 
hands  during  the  voyage  of  the  Alfred,  would 
at  times  have  been  glad  of  a  cook,  from   any 


AND    NEWFOUNDLAND. 


19 


source !     Each  of  us,  for   the   want  of  one, 
took  his  turn  at  cookinf?  in  rotation. 

Our  sleeping  accommodations  were  not  the 
least  among  the  beauties  and  conveniences 
of  a  well  organized  cabin  at  sea.  Around 
the  sides  of  the  vessel  were  small  divisions, 
where  such  of  the  crew  as  could  sleep  con- 
trived to  stow  themselves  away.  Our  beds  of 
down  were  fresh  from  the  farmer's  stubble, 
and  our  sheets  and  blankets  were  of  corres- 
ponding texture.  I  have  often  thought,  whilst 
trying  to  dose  away  in  sleep  in  such  a  berth? 
that  I  could  almost  count  the  number  of 
threads  in  my  coarse  blankets,  by  the  ridges 
on  my  back.  Our  embroidery  and  curtains 
were  readily  prepared  from  a  side  cut  of  coarse 
canvass,  the  remains  of  an  old  sail,  delicately 
strung  upon  an  ancient  fish  line  at  the  close 
of  day.  But  even  in  lodgings  thus  homely, 
I  could  at  times  obtain  the  sweetest  rest,  as  the 
feeblest  body  may  by  degrees  become  accus- 
tomed to  the  severest  hardships  and  difficul- 
ties of  the  mariner's  life. 

The  twentieth  of  May,  the  day  following 
our  departure,  was  the  Sabbath — and  most 
miserably  was  it  spent  to  me ;  mine  having 
become  a  severe  case  of  sea-sickness.     The 

a3 


20 


FIVE    MONTHS    IN    LABRADOR 


■*■  ,■ 


winds  were  high,  and  the  sea  exceedingly 
rough,  so  that  the  captain  shared  a  similar 
fate  with  me.  I  did  not  feel  great  sympathy 
for  him ;  but  it  was  probably  owing  to  the 
plight  in  which  the  rest  of  the  crew  saw  the 
captain,  that  I  was  spared  their  usual  rough 
jokes,  and  probably  from  being  forced  to  take 
the  customary  infallible  dose,  in  such  cases, 
of  raw  pork  and  molasses. 

On  the  following  day,  having  made  good 
progress  with  a  fair  wind,  we  encountered  a 
fog,  which  continued  to  increase  in  density, 
until  we  were  completely  shrouded,  as  it  were, 
in  darkness  even  at  noon  day.  Tliose  who 
are  acquainted  with  the  dismal  fogs  of  New- 
Britain,  need  not  be  informed,  that  in  the 
midst  of  them  there  is  truly  little  difference 
between  niglitand  day.  In  such  a  situation, 
afloat  upon  the  vvide  and  trackless  ocean,  the 
compass,  "  that  little  thing  under  the  bin- 
nacle," as  the  landsmen  say,  was  our  all  in 
all.  A  smacking  breeze  springing  up  in  our 
favor,  hurried  us  on  with  great  rapidity,  and 
'^  giving  the  land  a  good  birth,"  we  appre- 
hended no  danger  whatever,  except  being  run 
down  by  some  trader,  and  sharing  the  sad 
fate  of  many  a  poor  fisherman.     It  is  an  in- 


AND    NEWFOUNDLAND. 


21 


cident  of  no  rare  occurrence,  for  the  inmates 
of  small  craft  to  be  suddenly  aroused  from 
their  dremay  repose   in  quiet   hammocks,  to 
face  the  horrors  of  the  midnight  tempest,  the 
fierce  tornado,  and  perchance  the  more  dread- 
ful contact  of  ships  rushing  together  amid  the 
darkness.     In  such  scenes,  the  tempest-tost 
mariner,  heedless  as  he  generally  is,  is  made  to 
realize  the   truth  of  the   sentiment,  "  in  the 
midst  of  life   we  are   in  death."     The  crew 
of  our  schooner  were  now  divided    into  two 
watches,  of  four   each ;  for  the  fog  did  not 
seem  to  diminish,  and  we  were  unable  to  out- 
ride it.     The  first  watch  had  retired  to  rest ; 
the  second  was  divided,  one  being  placed  at 
the  helm,  and  the  others  at  the  bow,  to  keep 
a  good  look  out  aheadj  for  any  thing  that  ap- 
peared  unfriendly  or   suspicious.     The   re- 
maining two  were  below,  endeavoring  to  kin- 
dle an  unwilling  morning  fire.     It  was  a  gen- 
eral time  of  slumber,  and  thoughtless  securi- 
ty.    The  first  watch  were  in  sound  sleep— 
the  captain  reclined   ugon  his  hammock,  and 
"  got  fast  by  the  eye-lids,"  probably  suppos- 
ing himself  wide  from  the   land,  and  directly 
upon  his  course.     Our   worthy    helmsman, 
hov»  ever,  was  wide  awake.     An  experienced 


**^ 


22 


FIVE    MONTHS    IN    LABKADOR 


seaman,  and  used   to  danger,   he  knew  that 
there  mighlbe  peril  lurking  near,  while  run- 
ning down  the  coast  of  Nova  Scotia  in  the 
night,  amid  the  fogs.     At  an  unexpected  mo- 
ment, a  loud  shout  from  the  bows,  of"  break- 
ers ahead!^^  roused  every  soul  on  board,  and 
the  men  rushed  half  naked  upon  deck.     The 
captain,  palsied  almost  by  the  shock,  still  gave 
his  orders  with  great  presence  of  mind. — 
"  Keep  her  away — keep  her  away — hard  to 
the  lee — down  with  the  main  peak" — shout- 
ed the  captain.     But  at  this  critical  moment, 
the  helmsman,  struggling  at  the  tiller,  replied, 
"  I   can't  weather   it ! — get  the  small   boat 
ready!"     "We've  no  pins,  and   the  oars  are 
barred  in  the  main  hold,"  replied  the  aston- 
ished crew.     "  Lose  no   time  !"  shouted  the 
captain — "  sway  up  the  fore  sheet !"     All  was 
now  silence — the  vessel  had  run  in  the  space 
of  a  few  minutes  from  thirty  fathoms  of  water 
into  five — the  most  intense   anxiety  was  felt 
by  every  soul  on  board-— when  the  helmsman 
exclaimed,  "She'll  cjj^rr  it!  she'll  clear  it!" — 
and  presently  we  we^re  past  the  seeming  dan- 
ger.    The  breakers  we  had  neared  were  the 
St.  Mary's   ledges,   Sff  the    coast  of  Nova 
Scotia.     The  captain  now  changed  his  course, 


AND    NEWFOUNDLAND. 


23 


and  put  further  out  to  sea.  The  dismissed 
watch  retired  to  the  cabin  to  talk  over  the 
fortunate  escape  of  the  vessel — but  this  calm 
was  of  short  duration.  The  words  of  exul- 
tation, "  we  are  safely  out  from  among  the 
rocks,"  were  scarcely  uttered,  when  from 
aloft  we  heard  again  the  same  ominous  cry  of 
"  breakers  ahead !"  Thrice  in  succession 
was  the  alarm  thus  given,  as  the  roar  of  the 
waters  among  the  rocks,  gave  warning  of  our 
imminent  peril.  The  fog  continuing,  and 
the  increase  of  the  gale,  gave  us  reason  to  fear 
that  we  had  missed  our  course,  and  should  be 
finally  lost ;  but  it  was  our  happy  fortune  to 
pass  through  all  these  dangers  unharmed.-— 
The  protection  of  a  kind  and  beneficent  Prov- 
idence was  extended  to  us  in  an  especial  man-, 
ner  in  this  instance,  for  which  I  would  praise 
and  adore  His  holy  name. 

These  circumstances,  as  usual  among  the 
sailors,  gave  rise  to  many  dismal  anecdotes  of 
shipwreck,  disasters  and  death.  Every  one 
had  his  tale  of  danger,  and  as  we  sat  together 
upon  the  quarter-deck,*listening  and  recoun- 
ting these  adventures  of  the  mariner,  the  nar- 
rative 10  me  was  exceedingly  interesting. — 
The  account  of  one  of  these  ocean  disasters? 


24 


FIVE    MONTHS    IN    LABRADOU 


^n\ 


having  some  analogy  to  our  own  case  while 
amid  the  breakers,  I  here  present,  as  I 
had  it  from  the  mouth  of  the  narrator.  An 
EngUsh  trader,  with  a  stout  and  staunch  ship, 
was  some  years  since  saiHng  across  the  grand 
banks  of  Newfoundland,  when  he  was  over- 
taken by  one  of  those  dense  fogs,  which  ren- 
der it  difficult  to  see  far  ahead  even  during 
the  day,  and  impossible  in  the  night  to  dis- 
tinguish objects  distant  twice  the  length  of 
the  ship.  The  captain  placed  a  light  at  the 
mast-head,  and  a  watch  forward,  to  look  out 
for  the  fishing  smacks  that  are  accustomed  to 
lay  at  anchor  on  the  banks.  The  wind  was 
blowing  a  stiff  breeze,  and  the  vessel  going 
ahead  at  a  great  rate,  when  suddenly  the  cry 
from  the  watch  ol  "a  sail  ahead!"  alarmed 
the  trader ;  but  the  words  were  scarcely  ut- 
tered, before  he  was  upon  her.  She  was  a 
small  schooner  at  anchor  with  her  broadside 
towards  him.  Her  crew  were  all  asleep,  and 
had  neglected  to  hoist  a  light,  the  usual  and 
necessary  precaution  in  such  cases.  The 
bows  of  the  trader  struck  the  fisherman  amid 
ship,  and  the  force  and  weight  of  the  supe- 
rior vessel  bore  her  down.  As  the  crushed 
wreck  was  sinking  beneath  the   waves,  the 


AND    NEWFOUNDLAND. 


25 


captain  of  the  trader  had  a  gFimpse  of  two  or 
three  half  naked  beings  rushing  from  their 
cabin,  to  be  overwhelmed  by  the  waters,  and 
heard  their  last  piercing  shrieks,  as  his  vessel 
glided  onward,  while  the  poor  mariners  sunk 
in  their  watery  graves. 

The  inquisitive  reader  has  doubtless  pon- 
dered in  his  own  mind,  the  cause  of  our  de- 
parture from  the  course  we  intended  to  run. 
Our  skipper,  as  was  natural,  when  the  mis- 
take became  obvious,  looked  over  his  log  and 
reckoning,  to  see  if  he  could  discover  any  er- 
ror ;  but  after  a  careful  revision,  he  found  all 
things  right,  and  not  the  slightest  error  could 
he  discover.  Was  the  compass  at  fault  ? — 
We  happened  to  have  two  on  board,  and  to 
test  them,  we  took  that  from  the  binnacle  and 
placed  it  with  the  other,  side  by  side,  on  the 
quarter-deck.  They  traversed  correctly. — 
What  then  could  be  the  cause  of  our  danger- 
ous departure  from  the  true  course  ?  Our 
fears  were  awakened — many  ingenious  inter- 
rogatories were  put — every  one  had  ^s  rea- 
son— and  a  general  debate  ensued  among  the 
crew.  At  length  some  one  suggested  the 
propriety  of  searching  the  binnacle.  This 
was  no  sooner  done,  than  the  whole  mystery 


26 


FIVE    MONTHS    IN    LABRADOR 


v/as  at  once  solved — and  the  blundering  sai- 
lor was  shocked  to  perceive,  that  it  was  not 
for  want  of  a  navigator  that  we  had  failed  to 
go  to  pieces  upon  the  rocks !  The  careless 
old  rogue,  during  some  leisure  moment,  had 
placed  an  old  rusty  iron  candle-stick  hard 
by  the  side  of  our  magnetic  pilot,  and  as  he 
was  paid  for  his  labor,  did  not  care  a  farthing 
which  way  he  led  us — having  very  little  to 
gain,  and  nothing  to  lose  except  his  worthless 
life,  and  that  he  seemed  to  care  very  little 
about !  Thus,  in  the  various  situations  of 
life — in  politics,  in  morals,  and  religion.  The 
unskilful,  or  careless  pilot  witl  lead  individu- 
als, and  communities  into  error,  and  often- 
times upon  the  breakers  !  Young  reader^  see 
to  it,  while  you  are  in  the  harbor  of  youth, 
before  you  set  sail  upon  the  tempestuous 
ocean  of  life.  Be  wise  in  the  choice  of  your 
compass — choose  truth,  and  keep  it  as  pure 
as  the  sunbeam  from  all  attractions  of  selfish- 
ness and  deception — encase  it  in  equity  and 
righteousness — place  it  in  the  binnacle  of  sin- 
cerity— hoist  the  sail  of  perseverance,  and 
trust  no  one  at  the  helm,  but  steer  yourself — 
and  success  will  attend  you  ! 

But  I  hasten  to  subjects  more  immediately 


AND   NEWFOUNDLAND. 


27 


r; 


connected  with  this  narrative.  The  dense 
fog,  of  which  I  have  spoken,  continued  to 
hover  around  us  for  four  days,  when  the  sun 
broke  forth  in  all  his  glory,  giving  joy  and  an- 
imation to  our  hearts.  According  to  our 
reckoning,  we  were  now,  on  the  morning  of 
the  23d  of  May,  nearly  abreast  the  Bay  of 
Islands,  which  it  would  be  impracticable  to 
enter  in  a  fog.  About  eight  o'clock  in  the 
morning,  the  thrilling  cry  of  "  land  1"  was 
heard  from  the  main-top;  and  I  question 
whether  Columbus  himself  felt  more  joy  than 
I  experienced,  when  first  the  rugged  coast  of 
Newfoundland  hove  in  sight.  The  idea  of 
soon  again  treading  on  terra  firma  was  exhil- 
arating to  us  all.  I  was  much  delighted  with 
an  incident  that  took  place,  as  we  neared  the 
coast.  A  little  sparrow  which  had  winged 
its  way  out  into  the  gulf,  approached  us,  and 
for  some  time  fluttered  about  the  vessel,  as 
if  to  welcome  us  to  the  land.  Its  tameness 
was  to  me  remarkable ;  for  after  circling  for 
some  time  around  the  spars,  the  little  songs- 
ter at  length  perched  upon  the  fore  boom. — 
Thither  I  gently  moved,  stretched  out  my  arm 
towards  it,  an4  took  it  in  my  hand.  It  made* 
no  attempt  to  escape.     I  provided  for  its  en- 


T^ 


28 


FIVE    MONTHS    IN    LABRADOR 


'r^M^ 


tertainment  a  little  rice,  and  a  cup  of  water, 
which  seemed  to  increase  its  confidence,  for  it 
afterwards  sat  upon  my  finger,  and  sung 
one  of  its  sweetest  songs.  During  most^of 
the  day,  our  little  stranger  kept  about  the  ves- 
sel ;  but  as  we  made  slow  progress,  and  night 
began  to  approach,  she  sped  to  the  shore  be- 
fore us.  The  day  was  calm,  and  the  bosom  of 
the  ocean  tranquil.  The  scenery  before  us — 
the  high  promontories  of  the  Bay  of  Islands 
extending  into  the  gulf,  with  the  Newfound- 
land mountains  in  the  distance  towering  up- 
wards to  the  clouds — were  objects  of  great  in- 
terest. Climbing  up  to  the  main-top,  I  spent 
some  time  in  gazing  landward  upon  the 
variegated  landscape,  as  well  as  upon  the 
wide  ocean  below.  During  the  calm  of  the 
latter  portion  of  this  day,  we  saw  a  school  of 
porpoises,  gambolling  about  the  prow  of  the 
vessel.  At  a  little  distance  we  saw  a  grampus, 
heaving  his  huge  form  above  the  surface — and 
attempting  his  unwieldy  sports  among  his 
finny  neighbors  of  the  deep. 

Being  unable  to  enter  the  Bay  of  Islands, 
the  captain  resolved  to  pass  down  the  coast 

lijos   to  Boone 


ty 


bay. 


impr 

harb( 

conn 

night 

those 

right 

the  a 

a  plai 

upon 

peate 

the  c! 

comn 

thatn 

ry  hei 

Rock 

stretc 

sprinfc 

jocksj 

of  the 

€appe 

declin 

exceei 

distafi 

small 

as  the 

uted 


laying  off  in  sight  of  land  for  three  days,  we 


AN1>    NEWFOUNDLAND. 


29 


improved  a  favorable  wind,  and  entered  the 
harbor.  As  we  sailed  up  the  channel,  I  re- 
connoitred the  shore  with  a  glass.  Towards 
nightfall  we  floated  with  the  tide  between 
those  gigantic  cliffs  which  are  reared  upon  the 
right  and  left  of  Boone  bay.  So  calm  had 
the  atmosphere  become,  that  the  turning  of 
a  plank,  or  the  accidental  falling  of  an  oar 
upon  deck  produced  a  sound,  which  echo  re- 
peated from  the  mountain  shores.  And  when 
the  captain,  now  and  then,  gave  the  shout  of 
command,  there  seemed  to  be  airy  tongues 
that  mocked  him  from  every  cliff*.  The  scene- 
ry here  is  strikingly  grand  and  beautiful. — 
Rock  above  rock,  and  cliff"  succeeding  cliff*, 
stretched  upwards  and  far  away,  while  the 
sprinkling  of  green  foliage,  among  the  gray 
jocks,  and  stinted  firs  that  crowned  the  edges 
of  the  precipices,  with  here  and  there  a  snow- 
capped summit  glistening  in  the  rays  of  the 
declining  sun,  all  together  rendered  the  scene 
exceedingly  grand  and  beautiful.  At  some 
distance  from  the  harbor,  I  perceived  a  few 
small  huts,  the  inhabitants  of  which,  as  soon 
as  they  saw  we  were  from  "  the  States,"  sal- 
uted us  by  the  firing  of  guns,  a   compliment 

Bl 


'i*fc> 


;1 


30 


FIVE   MONTHS    IN    LABRADOR 


which  we  of  course  returned.  After  mooring 
the  vessel,  we  lowered  the  yawl,  and  all  hands 
went  on  shore. 


i'.i 


»i  . 


•         • 


4 


J; 


1^ 


AND    NEWFOUNDLAND. 


31 


CHAPTER  II. 


Welcome  reception. — Characterof  the  shore  inhabitants,  and 
the  nature  of  their  business. — Trade  and  pursuits. — Great 
importance  of  the  fisheries.*— Soil  and  productions  of  JVew- 
foundland. — Effects  of  the  climate.— Severity  of  the  win- 
ters.— St.  Johns,  the  capital. — Low  state  of  education,  re- 
ligion and  morals. — Strife  between  differing  sects  -—Pun- 
ishment of  a  newspaper  editor. — Prevalence  of  intemper- 
ance.— Trade  with  the  natives  of  the  interior. — ^The  Mic- 
macs  and  Mountaineers  :  their  habits,  dispositions  and 
.amusements. — Indian  dances   and  revelry.'       * 

We  had  no  sooner  reached  the  shore,  than 
the  inhabitants  came  huddUng  down  to  see 
their  unfrequent  visitants.  After  making 
numerous  inquiries,  and  ascertaining  the  par- 
ticulars of  our  voyage,  they  welcomed  us  to 
their  fire-sides.  We  accompanied  them  up 
to  one  of  their  huts,  surrounded  by  the  tall 
grass  upon  the  strand,  and  near  the  water's 
edge.  A  green  plat  of  several  acres  extended 
back  toward  the  hills,  on  which  was  a  profus- 
ion of  shrubbery,  intermixed  with  the  spruce, 
fir  and  yew  trees.  The  owner  of  the  hut 
politely   threw  open   his  door,  on  entering 


32 


FIVE    MONTHS    IN    LABRADOR 


i  I  rj 


which,  we  made  an  involuntary  obeisance, 
rather  than  receive  the  salutation  which  peo- 
ple are  apt  to  get,  who  carry  their  heads  too 
high.  We  found  the  inhabitants  full  of  ani- 
mation, boastful  of  their  hunting  and  fishing 
exploits,  and  extremely  inquisitive  about  every 
thing  relating  to  the  United  States.  They 
expressed  a  strong  desire  to  leave  their  bleak, 
inhospitable  climate,  and  barren  mountains, 
to  seek  a  better  country — but  wanted  the 
means.  They  would  gladly  exchange  their 
hunting  and  fishing,  for  the  cultivation  of  a 
fertile  soil,  the  advantages  of  which  to  the 
American  husbandman  they  seemed  to  com- 
prehend. And  when  I  explained  to  them  the 
rapid  advance  and  improvement  of  agriculture 
in  our  country,  and  told  them  that  it  was  the 
practice  of  the  governors  of  the  different 
states,  to  set  apart  at  the  close  of  each  year, 
a  day  of  public  thanksgiving  lo  God  for  the 
blessings  of  a  bountiful  harvest — they  coolly 
replied,  that  they  were  not  under  such  an  ob- 
ligation ;  for  it  was  evident  to  them  that  the 
all  wise  Disposer  of  events  had  more  highly 
favored  the  Americans,  by  giving  them  a  rich 
and  fertile  soil,  adapted  to  cultivation,  while 
he  had  allotted  to  the  islanders  scarcely   the 


ii 


couni 

preci 

can  h 

lengt 

rocks 

inhab 

harbo 


AND    NEWFOUNDLAND. 


33 


mce, 
peo- 
s  too 
'  ani- 
3hing 
3very 
They 
ileak, 
tains, 
1  the 
their 
I  of  a 
to  the 
com- 
tm  the 
alture 
IS  the 
Ferent 
I  year, 
or  the 
coolly 
an  ob- 
at  the 
highly 
a  rich 
while 
ly  the 


means  of  raising  a  patch  of  good  potatoes. 
The  poor  man's  ideas  of  the  benevol  ice  of 
Deity  seemed  to  be  sadly  circumscribed  by 
his  situation. 

There  is  a  fur  trading  establishment  situa- 
ted in  the  harbor,  owned  by  a  wealthy  Eng- 
lishman, from  whose  little  shop  three  hundred 
families  of  the  inhabitants  in  Newfoundland 
are  annually  supplied  with  articles  of  clothing, 
salt,  &c.,  in  exchange  for  the  furs  which  they 
bring  in  during  the  spring  and  fall.  The 
fisheries,also,  furnish  the  inhabitants  with  oth- 
er means  of  supplying  their  wants ;  and  the  ex- 
ports of  Newfoundland  find  their  way  into  re- 
mote corners  of  the  earth.  Their  furs  go  to 
England,  their  cod-fish  to  the  West-Indies 
and  South  America,  their  herring  and  salmon 
are  sent  to  Grand  Cairo  and  Jerusalem.  Boone 
bay  is  one  of  the  most  commodious  harbors  in 
Newfoundland,  and  extends  upwards  into  the 
country  about  twenty  miles,  between  high  and 
precipitous  shores,  on  either  side.  A  vessel 
can  here  lie  safely  at  anchor  within  a  cable's 
length  of  the  land,  so  bold  is  the  ascent  of  the 
rocks  that  line  the  shore.  There  are  only  forty 
inhabitants  living  at  this  place,  and  at  Rocky 
harbor,  which  is  situated  down  near  the  mouth 
c  1  • 


I'' 


34 


FIVE    MONTHS    IN    LABRADOR 


r^ 


of  the  bay,  and  much  exposed  to  the  winds 
and  seas. 

The  westerly  coast  of  Newfoundland, 
from  Cape  Ray  to  Cape  Carpono,  is  in  pos- 
session of  the  French,  so  far  as  the  fishing  is 
concerned,  under  the  treaty  of  1759.  Their 
line  of  possession,  howev^er,  extends  only  sev- 
enty feet  back  from  the  mark  of  high  tide.— 
This  right,  I  believe,  unless  further  extended 
by  treaty,  will  expire  in  1840.  DifBculties 
have  frequently  arisen  between  the  French 
and  English  fishermen,  and  residents,  and  the 
former  have  in  some  instances  compelled  the 
removal  of  the  latter,  in  cases  where  they  had 
attempted  to  establish  ivbding  houses  on  this 
coast.  An  armed  French  vessel  lay  in  Rocky 
harbor  during  the  past  summer,  for  the 
protection  of  their  fishermen.  In  one  in- 
stance, a  fishing  schooner  was  seized,  and 
three  or  four  hundred  quintals  of  fish  thrown 
overboard,  for  some  real  or  supposed  infrac- 
tion of  the  Frenchmen's  rights,  of  which  they 
are  very  tenacious.  But  it  is  a  fact  that  ought 
not  to  escape  notice,  that  they  most  grossly 
intrude  upon  the  rights  both  of  American 
and  English  fishermen  in  those  seas. 

The  large  island  that  is  called  by  the  Eng- 


Sebasti 
Vista  5 
larly  at 
Neiofo 
by  the 


V  1: 


AND    NEWFOUNDLAND. 


u 


inds 

and, 
pos- 
igis 
'heir 
sev- 
ie.— 
nded 
allies 
ench 
dthe 
d  the 
yrhad 
1  this 
Locky 
•  the 
e  in- 
and 
irown 
nfrac- 
1  they 
ought 
grossly 
erican 

{  Eng- 


lish Newfoundland,  and  by  the  French  Ter- 
re  Neuve,  shuts  up  the  northern  entrance  in- 
to the  Gulf  of  St.  Lawrence.  The  perpet- 
ual fogs  which  cover  it,  are  probably  produc- 
ed by  the  currents  that  flow  from  the  Antil- 
les, and  remain  for  a  time  between  the  great 
bank  and  the  coast,  before  they  escape  into 
the  Atlantic  ocean.  As  these  streams  retain 
a  great  portion  of  the  heat  which  was  imbibed 
in  the  tropical  regions,  they  are  from  fifteen 
to  twenty  degrees  of  Fahrenheit  warmer  than 
the  surrounding  water  at  the  banks  of  New- 
foundland. Whenever,  therefore,  the  tem- 
perature of  the  atmosphere  is  colder  than  that 
of  the  currents,  a  vapour  must  necessarily 
arise  from  them,  which  obscures  those  places 
with  a  moist  and  dense  air.* 

Within  twenty  years  after  the  supposed 
discovery  of  Newfoundland,  by  the  Cabots,f 
the  abundance  of  fish  on  its  banks  attracted  the 
attention  of  European  nations.     As  early  as 

■      '  — —-■"■-■  '■'  ■  ■■        ■  ..       ■      I-  ■      ■  I        ■l»....  ■■■■■■■.■■  ■— II     M^ 

^'Malte  Bmn,  vol.  iii,  198. 

t  Under  the  name  of  New-found-land,  were  originally 
comprehended  all  the  islands  that  lie  westerly  of  it  in  the 
Gulf  of  St.  Lawrence.  They  were  discovered  by  John  and 
Sebastian  Cabot  in  1497,  who  gave  them  the  name  of  Prima 
Vista;  but  John  Verazzan,  who  noticed  them  more  particu- 
larly afterwards,  gave  them  the  name  of  Ttrre  Neuve j  or 
iYeio  found-land.  Verazzan  was  afterwards  taken  and  eaten 
by  the  savages  of  one  of  the  islands. 


M 


36 


FIVE    MONTHS    IN    LABRADOR 


N 


M 


li 


^  i 


1519,  we  are  told  of  50  ships  being  seen 
there  at  one  time.  The  earliest  adventurers 
in  that  fishery,  were  the  Biscayans  of  Spain, 
and  the  Basques  of  France.  In  1577,  the 
French  had  150  vessels  there,  the  Spaniards 
100,  the  Portuguese  50,  while  the  English  had 
only  15.  The  Spaniards  and  Portuguese 
finally  relinquished  these  fisheries,  and  they 
were  engrossed  by  the  English  and  French, 
until  the  United  States,  from  their  superior 
advantages  of  neighborhood  and  facilities,  as 
well  as  skill  and  enterprise,  came  in  for  a  large 
share.  There  are  at  present  about  3000  ves- 
sels annually  engaged  in  these  fisheries,  from 
the  United  States,  France  and  Great  Britain, 
employing  more  than  ten  thousand  seamen. 
This  great  nursery  of  seamen,  and  source  of 
profit  to  the  country,  has  received  the  foster- 
ing care  of  our  government,  and  constitutes 
now  one  of  its  most  important  interests. 

The  soil  of  Newfoundland  is  exceedingly 
light  and  porous,  and  full  of  fibrous  roots,  ren- 
dering it  diflicult  to  pierce  without  a  spade. 
There  are  some  situations,  where  the  soil  more 
nearly  approaches  a  loam  and  alluvion  ;  but 
at  no  place  which  I  noticed  is  it  sufficiently 
rich  and  moist  for  profitable  culture.     Patches 


AND    NEWFOUNDLAND. 


37 


fe 


i 


of  ground,  rendered  tolerably  productive  by 
the  scraping  together  of  turf,  and  working  it 
from  year  to  year,  and  manuring  it  richly  with 
the  offals  of  the  fishery,  may  here  and  there 
be  seen — but  generally  under  the  supervision 
of  those  who  can  afford  such  expensive  kinds 
of  husbandry.  The  ridges  and  rocky  eleva- 
tions are  generally  covered  from  four  to  twen- 
ty inches  by  a  sort  of  earthy  moss,  unfit  to 
sustain  any  other  vegetable  substance.  In 
walking  over  this  covering  of  the  primitive 
rock,  the  foot  sinks  into  it  up  to  the  ancle,  and 
as  you  proceed  from  rock  to  rock,  whole  yards 
of  the  moss  will  sometimes  be  dislodged  and 
slide  down  at  once.  The  general  face  of  the 
country  is  such  that  cultivation  to  any  great 
extent  is  wholly  impracticable.  Travelling, 
to  any  great  extent,  over  such  a  surface,  is  ex- 
tremely fatiguing. 

The  winters  in  Newfoundland  are,  of  course? 
very  severe.  Snow  falls  at  the  beginning  of 
November,  and  covers  the  ground  until  May. 
During  this  long  period,  it  is  almost  literally 
a  continued  storm  of  snow  and  sleet.  When 
summer  comes,  it  comes  on  so  suddenly,  that 
spring  is  scarcely  known.  In  the  valleys,  and 
on  the  southerly  sides  of  tl 


mountams, 


cZ 


38 


FIVE    MONTHS    IN    LABRADOR 


■    II 


i 


herbage  springs  up  rapidly , while  the  mountains 
around  are  covered  with  deep  beds  of  perpetual 
snow  and  ice.  During  a  considerable  portion 
of  the  summer  months,  the  island  is  covered 
by  fogs,  sometimes  heavy  and  wet.  These  are 
not  deemed  unhealthy — but  on  the  contrary, 
being  produced  by  the  evaporation  of  saltwa- 
ter, are  considered  beneficial  in  many  chronic 
complaints.  A  residence  upon  Newfound- 
land during  the  summer  season,  is  often  found 
a  curative  in  cases  where  other  remedies  have 
totally  failed.  The  natives  are  generally  very 
healthy.  Epidemic  diseases  are  scarcely  ever 
known.  There  are  occasionally  cases  of  in- 
fluenza and  consumption  noticed,  but  the 
health  of  the  population  is  in  general  remark- 
able. Of  those  who  are  cut  off  in  youth  or 
middle  age,  it  is  supposed  that  one  third  are 
caused  by  the  terrible  scourge  of  intemper- 
ance. 

Of  the  forest  trees  in  Newfoundland,  the 
pine,  spruce,  hemlock,  mountain  ash,  and 
white  birch  (to  use  the  vernacular  phrases^  are 
those  only  which  attain  to  any  considerable 
size.  Near  the  coast,  no  trees  of  large  growth 
are  observed ;  but  twenty  or  thirty  miles  in 
the  interior,  in  the  valleys  among  the  moun- 


1 

I 


':f 


ANP    NEWFOUNDLAND. 


39 


tains,  there  are  found  trees  of  great  size,  and 
suitable  for  ship  building  or  exportation,  could 
they  be  conveniently  transported  to  the  sea. 
I  saw  a  white  birch  tree  at  Boone  bay,  brought 
from  a  neighboring  valley,  which  measured 
nine  feet  in  circumference  and  sixty  feet  in 
length.  At  the  head  of  St.  George's  bay,  is  a 
commodious  place  for  ship  building,  where  a 
few  small  vessels  have  been  built  for  the  fish- 
ing business. 

My  limited  residence  in  Newfoundland, 
rendered  it  impracticable  to  go  into  any  in- 
vestigation of  its  botanical  or  mineral  produc- 
tions ;  and  of  the  white  inhabitants  who  live 
along  the  coast,  I  could  learn  but  very  little 
on  these  subjects,  and  of  the  natives,  nothing. 
The  island  may  be  said  to  be  fenced  in,  as  it 
were,  by  uhite  inhabitants,  who  settle  in  the 
coves,  bays,  and  harbours,  and  upon  the  small 
streams,  for  the  purpose  of  salmon  fishing, 
and  their  dwellings  are  not  unfrequently  five 
or  six  leagues  apart.  These  mostly  consist 
of  miserable  huts,  constructed  out  of  spruce 
P'lles  and  birch  bark,  and  some  covered  with 
turf.  Most  of  these  people  go  poorly  clad, 
and  are  extremely  dirty,  and  negligent  of  all 
proper  regard  for  cleanliness.   They  are  gross- 

c3 


ti  > 


40 


FIVE    MONTHS    IN    LABRADOR 


\'i 


\y  ignorant  in  respect  to  every  thing  but  the 
visible  horizon  around  them — and  their  prin- 
cipal delight  is  the  almost  universal  occupa- 
tion of  fishing.  This  indeed  is  their  princi- 
pal source  of  living.  A  lamentable  degree 
of  ignorance  prevails  among  these  shore  in- 
habitants generally,  with  the  exception  of  the 
few  large  trading  places,  such  as  St.  Johns, 
Bona  Vista,  Cape  Carbonier,  Placentia,  &c. 
which  are  towns  of  considerable  importance, 
where  enterprising  foreigners  have  settled,and 
carry  on  ship  building,  and  various  branches 
of  trade  and  business.  St.  Johns,  the  capi- 
tal, is  a  place  of  considerable  importance, 
contains  a  population  of  nearly  fifteen  thou- 
sand, embracing  some  wealthy  and  intelligent 
merchants  and  professional  men.  A  large  pro- 
portion, however,  are  engaged  in  the  fisheries, 
in  one  way  or  another.  The  houses  of  wor- 
ship are  principally  for  the  Episcopalians,  and 
Roman  Catholics — these  two  classes  of  chris- 
tians embracing  nearly  all  who  profess  to  be 
religious,  among  the  inhabitants.  Between 
these  denominations,  a  great  degree  of  un- 
charitable feeling  exists,  which  has  on  some 
occasions  broken  out  into  acts  of  open  hos- 
tility and  violence  between  individuals.    A 


AND    .MEWFOUNDLAND. 


41 


disgraceful  instance  was  mentioned  to  nne. 
The  editor  of  an  episcopal  periodical  at  Carbo- 
nier,  owing  to  sonrie  severity  in  his  comments 
either  upon  the  superstitions  of  the  catholics, 
or  the  misconduct  of  some  of  the  father  con- 
fessors— became  peculiarly  obnoxious  to  the 
members   of  that  sect.     They  admonished, 
and  finally  threatened  him  with  revenge,  if 
he  continued  his  attacks  upon   the  moraUty 
of  their  priests  ;  but  he  still  continued  to  as- 
sail them,  and  exposed  many  cases  of  gross 
imposture,  fraud  and  immorality.      Instead 
of  resorting  to  the  civil  tribunals  for  redress, 
(if  indeed  they  did  not  apprehend  further  ex- 
posure when  once  drawn  into  court,)  they 
determined  on  a  different  kind  of  punishment; 
and  the  obnoxious  editor,  having  occasion  not 
long  after,  to  pass  through  an   unfrequented 
wood  some  niiles  distant  from  Harbor  Grace, 
was  there  way-laid  by  a  gang  dressed  in  the 
disguise  of  Indians,  and  cropped  of  both  his 
ears  !     Attempts  were  made  to  detect  the  au- 
thors of  this  outrage,  but  without  success :  and 
the  offending  editor  having  got  enough  of 
martyrdom   to  satisfy  his  ambition,  became 
quite  circumspect  on  the  question  of  the  im- 
piety of  the  catholics — and  they,  abundantly 


\  . 


n 


43 


FIVE    MONTHS    IN    LABRADOR 


,ff 


satisfied  with  what  they  deemed  a  judgment 
upon  the  heresy  of  their  assailant,  retrained 
from  all  further  controversy.  And  so  the 
matter,  after  reigning  as  a  nine  days  wonder, 
was  quietly  suffered  to  rest.  Thus  much  for 
the  freedom  of  the  press  in  Newfoundland ! 

There  are  probably  not  more  than  one  tenth 
of  the  population,  who  make  any  pretension 
to  religious  faith  and  worship;  the  great  mass 
of  the  population  regarding  the  Sabbath  as  a 
day  for   sports   and    pastimes,   and   usually 
spending  it  in  drunken  frolicksand  carousals. 
Early  on  the  morning  of  the  Sabbath,  boats 
may  be  seen  putting  off  from  the  neighboring 
harbors  and  coves,  laden  with   men,  tvomen 
and  children,  who  meet  together  at  someplace 
agreed  upon,  to  spend  the  day  in  recreation. 
One  of  their  principal   means  of  excitement 
is  a  free  use  of  stimulating  drinks.     The  men, 
women  and  children  partake  of  it  freely.    On 
such  occasions,  a  grand   feast  of  cod's  head 
chowder  is  usually  served  up ;  after  which, 
sports,  and  sometimes  bloody  affrays  upon 
the  adjacent  green  ensue,  according  as  the  ef- 
fects of  the  intoxicating  cup  are  developed; 
and  the  evening  closes  in  boisterous  songs 
and  uncouth  dances,  and  all  the  wild  uproar 


of 


n 
i 


AND    NEWFOUNDLAND. 


43 


of  bacchanalian  revelry.  The  scene  closes 
with  a  promiscuous  prostration  upon  the  floor 
in  drunken  stupor.  Such  is  not  an  unfaith- 
ful picture  of  the  manners  of  the  great  ma- 
jority of  the  lower  classes  of  the  inhabitants 
of  Newfoundland.  And  how  is  it  with  the 
wealthier  and  more  intelligent  portions  of  the 
same  community  ?  There  are  many  individ- 
uals here,  as  there  are  in  all  communities^who 
are  patterns  of  sobriety  and  morality  in  their 
habits  and  conduct ;  but  candor  obliges  me 
to  say,  that  the  marks  of  intemperance  are 
seen  in  almost  every  family — and  that  the 
principal  difference  between  the  high  and  the 
low,  in  respect  to  habits,  is,  that  while  the 
poor  and  the  unlettered  drink  their  miserable 
new  rum  and  gin,  and  lay  prostrate  in  drunk- 
enness, covered  with  filthy  rags,  in  their  dirty 
houses — the  better  S07*t  of  people  get  fash- 
ionably^corned  on  nmdeira  and  champaigne, 
and  hide  the  outward  exhibition  of  shame  in 
their  richly  decorated  saloons  !  Their  wealth 
gives  them  the  means  to  get  drunk  in  style, 
while  their  rank  in  fashionable  society  serves 
to  screen  their  folly  from  public  observation. 
Should  the  apostles  of  temperance  in  our  fa- 
vored country  get  out  of  employment,through 


44 


riVE    MONTHS    IN    LABRADOR 


";f 


the  great  reforms  which  they  propose,  and 
have  done  so  much  toward  accomplishing, 
they  may  find  labor  for  a  quarter  of  a  centu- 
ry at  least,  on  the  rum-cursed  and  sterile  soil 
of  Newfoundland. 

The  means  of  education  upon  the  island 
are  scarcely  worth  the  name.  Of  schools 
there  are  but  few,  and  those  are  chiefly  main- 
tained in  questionable  existence  by  individual 
exertion.  A  great  portion  of  the  population 
are  consequently  brought  up  without  knowing 
even  the  alphabet,and  are  grossly  ignorant  and 
vicious.  There  are  one  or  more  printing  es- 
tablishments on  the  island  ;  but  the  light  they 
scatter  is  altogether  inadequate  to  pierce  the 
gloom  of  the  barbarism  that  shrouds  the  island. 

The  inhabitants  of  the  interior,  are  a  de- 
generate race  of  Indians — corrupted,  as  the 
natives  always  are  by  their  intercourse  with  the 
whites.  They  are  composed  of  the  remnants 
and  descendants  of  two  tribes,  called  Mic- 
macs  and  Mountaineers — the  Micmacs  resid- 
ing in  their  groups  of  cabins  on  plats  of  table 
land  in  rear  of  the  European  settlements, 
and  the  Mountaineers,  as  their  name  indi- 
cates, living  farther  north  among  the  moun- 
tains.   They  are  a  hardy  and  athletic  race  of 


AND    NEWFOUNDLAND. 


45 


savages,  resembling  the  northern  and  north- 
western tribes  in  the  United  States  and  Can- 
ada. They  are  extremely  jealous  and  quar- 
relsome, especially  where  the  fire-water  has 
been  among  them.  But  their  feuds  are  gen- 
erally appeased  with  blows,  and  bruises,  with- 
out the  shedding  of  much  blood.  Riwenge, 
however,  is  as  sweet  to  them,  and  as  uner- 
ringly follows  any  real  injury,  as  among  the 
rudest  savages  of  the  American  wilds.  These 
aboriginal  inhabitants  of  Newfoundland,  it  is 
said,  were  formerly  subjected  to  the  Mo- 
hawks, one  of  the  most  powerful  and  war- 
like tribes  of  the  West,  and  there  is  a  tradi- 
tion, that  until  the  power  of  that  tribe  became 
extinct,  it  was  a  custom  with  the  Indians  of 
Newfoundland  to  send,  at  stated  periods,  a 
canoe  and  several  men  up  the  St.  Lawrence, 
to  pay  homage  to  the  chiefs  of  the  Mohawks 
in  Canada.  These  natives  were  savage  war- 
riors in  the  time  of  the  French  possession  of 
Nova  Scotia  and  Newfoundland,  and  unmer- 
cifully massacred  and  scalped  whole  crews  of 
English  vessels  wrecked  on  those  dreary  and 
inhospitable  coasts. 

In  the  second  edition  of  '^  The  Great  His- 
torical, Geographical,    Genealogical   and 


46 


FIVE    MONTHS    IN    LABRADOR 


Political  Dictionary,^'  by  Collier,  publish- 
ed in  1701,  I  find  the  following  account  of 
tne  Indians  of  Newfoundland,  given  by  voy- 
agers who  visited  the  island  in  1612. 

"The  Natives  habitations  were  nothing 
but  poles  set  round  and  meeting  on  the  top, 
about  ten  feet  broad,  covered  with  Deer  skins, 
and  the  fire  in  the  midst.  The  people  are  of 
a  middling  stature,  beardless,  broad  faced, 
and  delight  to  paint  with  Oaker.  Some  of 
them  went  naked,  having  only  their  privities 
covered  with  a  skin.  They  believed  in  one 
God,  who  created  all  things,  and  alledged, 
that  God  took  a  number  of  arrows  and  stuck 
in  the  ground,  from  whence  men  and  women 
first  sprung  up.  One  of  their  Sagamores  or 
Governors  being  asked  concerning  the  Trin- 
ity, answered.  There  was  one  God,  one  Son, 
one  Mother,  and  the  Sun,  which  were  four 
yet  God  was  abo\e  all.  And  being  question- 
ed whether  they  or  their  ancestors  had  heard, 
that  God  was  come  into  the  world,  they  said, 
they  had  not  seen  him.  Some  of  them  con- 
verse visibly  with  the  Devil,  who  tells  them 
what  they  must  do  in  war  and  other  matters. 
Samuel  Chaplain,  gives  an  account  of  a  feast 
made  by  one  of  their  great  Lords  in  his  cabin 


AND    NEWFOUNDLAND. 


47 


in  1603,  eight  or  ten  kettles  of  meat,  being 
set  on  several  fires  some  yards  assunder ;  the 
men  sat  on  both  sides  the  room  with  dishes 
of  bark.     Before  the  meat  was   boiled,   one 
took  his  dog  and  danced  about  the  kettles, 
and  when  he  came  before  the  Sagamore, 
threw  the  dog  down;  a  second  did  the  like, 
and    after  the  feast,  they    danced  with  the 
heads  of  their  enemies  in  their  hands,  singing 
all  the  while.     They  have  many  fires  in  their 
cabins,  ten  families  sometimes  living  together, 
lying  upon  skins  one  by  another,  and  their 
dogs,  which  resemble  our  foxes,  with  them. 
At  another  feast  the  women  and  maids  sat  in 
ranks,  the  men  standing  behind  singing,  and 
of  a  sudden    the   women  stript   themselves 
stark  naked,  without  any  shame,  and  their 
song  being  ended,  cryed  with  one  voice,  ho, 
ho,  ho,   then  covered  themselves  with  their 
mantles  of  skins.     At  14  or  15  years  old  their 
maids  have  many  lovers,  and  live  in  impurity 
with  as  many  of  them  as  they  please,  for  5  or 
6  years,  and  then  takes  one  of  them,  whom 
she  likes  best,  for  her  husband,  provided  he 
be  a  good  hunter,  and  lives  chastely  with  him, 
except  he  forsake  her  on  account  of  barren- 
ness.   They  put  their  dead  in  a  pit  jvith  all 


48 


FIVE    MONTHS    IN    LABRADOR 


.F  1!, 


il " 


their  goods,  setting  many  pieces  of  wood  and 
a  red  stake  over  it ;  they  believe  the  immor- 
tality of  the  soul,  and  that  the  dead  go  into  a 
far  country  to  make  merry  vi^ith  their  friends. 
When  sick,  they  send  to  one  Sagamore  Mem- 
berton  a  conjurer,  w^ho  prays  to  the  Devils, 
blows  upon  the  party,  cuts  him  and  sucks  the 
blood ;  he  heals  wounds  in  the  same  manner, 
applying  a  round  slice  of  beaver  stones,  for 
which  they  present  him  with  venison  or  skins. 
They  consult  the  devil  for  news,  who  always 
answers  doubtfully,  and  sometimes  false.  He 
also  directs  them  where  to  find  game  when 
hungry,  and  if  they  miss,  he  excuses  it  by  say- 
ing, that  the  beast  changed  place ;  but  most 
times  they  speed,  which  makes  them  believe 
the  devil  to  be  God.  The  conjurers  when 
they  consult,  fix  a  staff  in  a  pit,  to  which  they 
tie  a  cord,  put  their  head  into  the  pit,  and  in- 
voke satan  in  an  ur.known  language,  with  so 
much  pain  till  they  sweat  again :  Then  the 
wizzard  persuades  the  people,  that  he  holds 
the  devil  fast  with  his  cord,  forcing  him 
to  answer;  then  he  sings  to  his  praise  for 
his  discovery,  which  is  answered  by  the  sava- 
ges dancing  and  singing  in  a  strange  tongue ; 
after  which  they  leap  over  a  fire,  and  put  a 


AND    NEWlTOUNDLAND. 


49 


pole  out  of  the  top  of  the  cabin  with  some- 
thing on  it  which  the  devil  carries  away. 
Memberton  wore  a  triangular  purse  about  his 
neck,  with  something  in  it  like  a  nut  that  he 
called  his  spirit." 

Theye  Indians  of  Newfoundland  carry  on 
a  traffic  with  the  shore  inhabitants  in  furs  and 
peltries,  for  which  they  take  in  exchange  ar- 
ticles of  food  and  clothing,  necessary  for  their 
families.  They  are  very  punctual  to  their 
engagements.  In  the  spring  and  fall  they 
bring  in  their  furs,  and  take  a  new  supply  for 
the  eiisuing  season.  The  trader  extends  to 
them  a  credit,  which  they  are  careful  not  to 
lose,  as  a  failure  to  obtain  the  accustomed 
supply,  would  expose  them  to  suffering,  if 
not  starvation.  The  ^^  credit  system"  is  there- 
fore in  full  vogue  between  the  English  factors 
and  savages  of  the  island,  and  if  the  advan- 
tage happen  there,  as  elsewhere,  to  be  prin- 
cipally on  the  side  of  the  creditor,  it  also 
serves  to  save  the  poor  debtor  from  extreme 
want  and  deprivation.  There  are  instances 
of  great  wealth  accumulated  in  a  few  years, 
by  this  kind  of  traffic  with  the  Indians  of 
Newfoundland.  There,  as  every  where  else, 
it  seems  to  be  the  lot  of  the  red  man  to  fal^ 
Dl 


T-r|, 


50 


rJVE    MONTHS    IN    LABRADOR 


a  prey  to  the  cupidity  and  avarice  of  the 
whites. 

Twice  a  year  the  merchant  ships  arrive 
from  England  with  cargoes  of  dry  goods, 
groceries,  &.c.  And  on  the  arrival  of  one  of 
these  vessels,  the  Indians,  who  are  looking 
for  their  expected  supplies,  flock  down  to  the 
shore,  and  have  a  grand  holiday.  Dances, 
games,  frolic  and  fun  are  the  order  of  the  day, 
until  the  goods  are  unpacked,  and  each  pur- 
chaser receives  his  half-yearly  supply.  Hap- 
pening to  be  on  shore  during  one  of  these  ga- 
la daySj  a  sagamore  informed  ine  that  there 
was  to  be  a  dance  in  the  evening,  and  press- 
ed me  to  join  the  ring.  I  declined  his  invita- 
tion, being  not  over  anxious  to  expose  myself 
to  the  rude  ceremonies  of  such  an  occasion. 
The  old  fellow  was  not  to  be  put  oif,  and 
grasping  me  round  the  waist,  with  rather  a 
herculean  squeeze,  he  carried  me  into  the 
midst  of  his  company,  nolens  volens.  See- 
ing that  he  was  already  under  the  influence 
of  liquor,  and  probably  not  to  be  trifled  with, 
I  thought  it  the  *^  better  part  of  valor"  not  to 
attempt  an  escape.  I  did  not,  I  confess,  ex- 
actly like  the  company  into  which  I  was  so 
unceremoniously  thrust, but  contrived  to  put 


li.1     : 


AND    NKVVFOUNDLAND. 


51 


the 

rnve 
)ods, 
lie  of 
)king 
o  the 
nces, 
!  day, 
pur- 
Hap- 
se  ga- 
there 
press- 
in  vita- 
myself 
jasion. 
if,  and 
iher  a 
to  the 
See- 
iuence 
d  with, 
not  to 
ess,  ex- 
was  so 
to  put 


on  as  much  swagger  and  sang  froid  as  was 
necessary  to  enact  my  part  in  my  new  posi- 
tion. I  took  a  seat  in  one  corner  of  the  room 
to  observe  the  ceremonies  of  the  dance.  An 
old  Indian  soon  took  his  stand  in  the  middle 
of  the  floor.  His  stature  was  small,  but  with 
a  body  disproportionably  stout  and  thick.  A 
white  blanket  hung  loosely  upon  his  shoul- 
ders— under  which  a  long  hempen  frock  ex- 
tended down  to  his  knees.  He  had  on  a  sort 
of  loose  trousers  of  half  dressed  leather,  and 
buskins  of  undressed  seal-skin.  He  had  a 
sort  of  hat  upon  his  head,  made  of  the  skin 
of  some  sea  fowl  dressed  with  the  feathers 
on.  In  each  hand  he  held  a  stick  some  ten 
or  twelve  inches  in  length.  Thus  accoutred 
he  commenced  the  evening  ceremony  by  a 
monotonous  song,  the  words  of  which  were 
totally  unintelligible  to  my  ear,  keeping  time 
with  his  feet,  and  striking  his  sticks  rapidly 
together,  and  producing  a  prodigious  clatter. 
Ever  and  anon  a  loud  yell  was  uttered  by  the 
performer,  whereupon  the  whole  circle  joined 
in  the  chorus.  The  noise  and  the  merriment 
increased  until  all  were  heartily  engaged  with 
shuffling  feet,  and  voices  strained  to  the  ut- 
most.    An  hour  of  these  rousjh  and  tumultu- 


52 


FIVE   MONTHS    IN    LABRADOR 


ous  sports,  was  sufficient  to  satisfy  my  curi- 
osity, and  I  left  them  at  their  merry  making, 
which  was  continued  far  into  the  night,  end- 
ing, as  usual,  in  riotous  and  beastly  intoxica- 
tion. 


•  111" 


:;i! 


AND   NEWFOUNDLAND. 


53 


CHAPTER  III. 


Hunting  expeditions.— Animals  of  the  chase.— Frauds  of  the 
iur-traders.— Englishman's  standard  of  avoirdupois.— En- 
thusiasm of  the  hunters. — Excursion  to  the  mountains. — 
Adventure. — Marriage  ceremonies.— Mode  of  redressing 
grievances. — Disposition  of  the  inhabitants  5  their  kindness 
towards  one  another  j  their  attachment  to  the  Newfound- 
land dog. 

As  soon  as  the  fishing  season  terminates, 
in  the  month  of  October,  the  inhabitants  make 
preparations  for  their  hunting  excursions  dur- 
ing the  long  winter  that  is  to  succeed.  The 
forests  among  the  mountains  afford  shelter 
for  numerous  bears,  wolves,  caribou  and  fox- 
es. To  these  retreats  the  hunters  repair  in 
companies  of  from  four  to  twenty,  carrying 
along  with  them  the  provisions  necessary  to 
satisfy  their  hunger,  and  blankets  wherewith 
to  shelter  themselves  during  the  long  winter 
nights  among  the  mountains.  They  hunt 
during  the  day,  separating  at  short  distances 
one  from  another,  so  as  to  be  within  hail  in 
case  of  emergency.  As  night  approaches, 
they  assemble  together,  scarcely  ever  failing 
to  bring  in  some  trophy  of  the  chase.    Their 

d2 


54 


FIVE    MONTHS    iN    LABRADOR 


temporary  lent  is  constructed  out  of  the  limbs 
of  trees,  and  bushes  bent  together,  and  cov- 
ered with  boughs,  and  sometimes  with  banks 
of  snow,  scraped  out  from  the  flooring  of  the 
hut,  and  thrown  up  around  the  rude  habita- 
tion. A  blazing  fire  is  kept  in  the  interior, 
the  smoke  of  which  passes  through  an  aper- 
ture left  in  the  top,  and  the  weary  hunters, 
after  partaking  of  refreshment,  and  thawing 
off  the  icicles  from  their  buskins,  roll  them- 
selves up  in  their  blankets,  and  lie  down  to 
rest  upon  the  pine  boughs  surrounding  their 
blazing  fire.  Within  four  or  five  days,  usu- 
ally, the  party  of  hunters  will  have  gathered 
together  as  many  skins  of  the  animals  slain 
as  they  can  well  carry,  and  they  then  take  up 
their  trail  homeward.  The  carcasses  of  the 
slain,  with  the  exception  of  the  caribou  and 
bear,  are  left  to  be  devoured  by  other  ani- 
mals, that  are  always  prompt  to  scent  the  car- 
nage, themselves  perhaps  to  be  subjected  to 
a  similar  fate  on  the  encampment  of  the  next 
party  of  hunters  in  the  neighborhood. 

It  is  not  necessary,  perhaps,  for  me  to  give 
a  description  of  the  forest  animals  6f  New- 
foundland, as  they  are  not  dissimilar  to  those 
of  the  northern  parts  of  the  United  States 


AND    NEWFOUNDLAND. 


55 


and  Canada.  The  black  and  brown  bears  of 
Newfoundland  grow  to  a  large  size,  not  un- 
frequently  weighing  three  or  four  hundred 
pounds.  The  moose  and  deer,  formerly  very 
plenty,  are  gradually  thinning  off,  and  should 
the  industry  and  zeal  of  the  inhabitants  keep 
pace  with  the  demands  of  the  traders  for  skins 
and  furs,  half  a  century  may  not  elapse  be- 
fore the  wild  animals  will  become  as  scarce 
in  Newfoundland,  as  they  now  are  in  the 
middle  states  of  the  Union. 

In  the  early  settlement  of  all  countries,  the 
fi  '  V  and  the  chase  are  naturally  the  chief 
objCcis  of  attraction.  The  natives  being  un- 
acquainted with  the  value  of  furs,  immense 
quantities  are  procured  from  them  for  articles 
of  little  or  no  value.  The  exchange  which 
they  make  of  their  rude  botvs  and  traps  for 
fire  arms,  also  contributed  in  the  early  settle- 
ments to  establish  a  regular  commerce  be- 
tween the  Europeans  and  natives ;  and  grad- 
ually those  hordes  which  nature  intended  for 
the  subsistence  of  the  red  man,  have  perished, 
race  after  race,  until  many  of  the  most  noble 
and  majestic  animals  have  become  entirely 
extinct. 

Princely  fortunes  have  been  amassed  by 
d3 


n 


■•"  u    * 


56 


FIVK    MONTHS    IN    LABRADOR 


residents  on  the  shores  of  Newfoundland, 
who  practised  towards  the  Indians  of  that 
island  the  same  frauds  and  chicanery,  which 
lie  at  the  foundation  of  the  overgrown  wealth 
of  some  of  the  fur-trading  millionaries  in  the 
United  States.  Many  anecdotes  illustrating 
the  oppression  of  the  traders  towards  the  na- 
tives, were  related  to  me.  But  the  narrative, 
to  those  acquainted  with  the  history  of  our 
own  country,  and  the  wrongs  we  have  syste- 
matically inflicted  upon  the  aborigines,  need 
not  be  recited. — When  quite  a  lad,  and  liv- 
ing on  the  borders  of  one  of  the  most  beau- 
tiful of  American  rivers,  I  used  to  hear  sto- 
ries told  of  the  traffick  of  oar  fathers  with 
the  red  men,  the  morality  of  which  I  could 
scarcely  comprehend.  The  untutored  sav- 
age, eager  to  possess  some  trifling  bauble,  a 
gun,  or  perchance  a  jug  of  rum,  would  en- 
gage to  pay  the  price  in  furs,  the  weight  of 
which  was  to  be  ascertained  by  the  English- 
man's standard  of  avoirdupois — in  which  the 
hand  of  the  trader  weighs  one  pound,  and 
his /oof  two  !  In  this  species  of  fur-trading 
sagacity,  the  European  residents  at  Newfound- 
land are  not  a  whit  behind  their  brethren  of 
Yankee  land. 


AND    NEWFOUNDLAND. 


57 


Hunters  are  proverbially  fond  of  recount- 
ing their  exploits.  Like  old  sailors,  who  have 
encountered  perils  without  number,  they  have 
long  yarns  to  spin  out,  whenever  they  get 
comfortably  seated  by  a  warm  fire,  with  a 
stiff  mug  of  whiskey,  or  the  never-forgotten 
pipe  of  tobacco,  to  warm  them  into  loquacity. 
They  love  to  tell  children  and  young  people 
of  their  hair-breadth-escapes  from  the  claws 
of  the  panther  or  catamount,  and  from  the 
uncomfortable  hug  of  the  huge  black  bear. 
I  recollect  how  I  used  to  sit  upon  the  knee 
and  listen  to  the  tales  of  an  old  hunter,  who 
settled  in  the  interior  of  New-Hampshire 
some  seventy  years  since,  and  who  then  had 
literally  no  neighbor  for  many  miles,  while 
the  territory  he  had  pitched  upon,  was  in  the 
hitherto  undisputed  possession  of  catamounts, 
wild-cats,  bears  and  wolves.  His  tales  are 
still  fresh  in  my  recollection,  and  they  ena- 
bled me  to  tell  my  share  of  the  stories  of 
hunting  adventures,  while  spending  a  few 
hours  in  the  hunter's  cabin  at  Newfoundland. 

The  enthusiasm  of  these  hunters,  and  their 
descriptions  of  the  wild  and  wooded  regions 
in  which  they  caught  their  game,  excited  my 
curiosity  to  visit  the  interior.     I  prevailed  on 


ii 


58 


FIVE    MONTHS    IN    LABRADOR 


M  .. 


t    Mi; 


one  of  my  companions  in  the  voyage  to  ac- 
company me  in  the  proposed  excursion  ;  and 
we  started  off  in  high  glee  towards  the  rug- 
ged hills  that  lie  back  some  miles  from  Boone 
bay.     We  soon  got  among  the  mountain  de- 
files, and  taking  certain  points  as  land-marks 
for  our  return,  we  plunged  into  the  forest. 
We  passed  now  and  then  a  jungle  of  matted 
firs,  where  the  ravines  wound  round  the  base 
of  the  hills.     Once  or  twice   we  got  plump 
into  a  quagmire  at  the  base  of  a  cliff,  where 
the  earth  was  kept  soft  and  moist  by  springs 
issuing  from  fissures  in  the  rock.     But  being 
resolved  to  ascend  so  that  we  could  overlook 
the  harbour  of  Boone  bay,  we  scrambled  on- 
ward. "  over  brake  and  over  briar,"  climbinsr 
clifi'  after  cliff,  until  I  grew  weary,  and  threw 
myself  down   upon  a  green  spot  by  the  side 
of  a  gigantic  old  trunk   of  a  fir,  which   per- 
haps had  withstood  the  blasts  of  centuries, 
before  it  decayed  in  its  branches,  and  fell  like 
an  aged  man   to  mingle  with  the  dust.     I 
know  not  that  I  ever  saw  in  this  country  a 
specimen  of  the  fii    -ee  at  all  to  be  compared 
with  the  decaying    »  ^nk,  on  which  I  was  at 
this  time  resting  a  id  recruiting  my  strength. 
Could  I  have  got  \l  them,  I  would  have  count- 


.•  'i 


AND    NEWFOUNDLAND. 


59 


ed  the  grains,  and  rmarked  the  exact  age  of 
this  old  settler  in  the  forests  of  Newfoundland. 
But  while  I  was  thus  musing,  my  compan- 
ion, more  agile,  or  less  fatigued  than  myself, 
pushed  onward,  and  had  gone  entirely  beyond 
the  reach  of  my  voice.  I  followed  with  as 
good  grace  as  I  could  foralaggai  J  :  but  could 
hear  no  sound  in  answer  to  my  oft  repeated 
calls,  except  the  reverberation  of  the  echoes 
— and  these,  amid  the  solitudes  of  a  forest, 
only  serve  to  make  the  traveller  feel  more 
sensibly  his  loneliness.  I  began  to  fear  that 
my  companion,  or  myself,  were  out  of  the 
course  of  the  trail  we  had  agreed  to  follow, 
but  at  length,  on  emerging  from  the  skirt  of 
the  forest  surrounding  the  height  which  we 
had  marked  out  for  our  ascent,  I  discovered 
my  comrade  quietly  resting  on  the  summit  of 
the  mountain,  which  he  had  reached  an  hour 
before  me.  Beyond  this  height,  which  was 
perhaps  five  or  six  hundred  feet  above  the 
level  of  the  bay,  we  had  not  the  courage  to 
venture.  The  scenery  about  us,  was  exceed- 
ingly wild.  The  mountains  are  piled  together 
in  apparent  disorder,  overlapping  and  abut- 
ting upon  each  other.  In  front  of  us,  we  had 
the  harbor  in  full  view,  and  the  houses  of  the 


60 


PIVB  MOTO-HS  m  LABBADOR 


■n( 


ft 


I 

I: 


I 


inhabitants.  Here  and  there  was  to  be  seen 
a  patch  of  beautiful  green  pasturage — and 
abroad  through  the  gorges  of  the  mountains 
were  seen  the  dark  foliage  of  the  evergreens, 
through  which  the  lofty  uirch  reared  upward 
its  white  trunk,  overtopping  the  dense  mass 
of  green  beneath.  A  sort  of  stinted  or  scrag- 
gy mountain  alders  bristled  upon  the  edges 
of  the  precipices — all  the  trees  lessening  in 
size,  the  higher  upward  they  were  noticed 
among  the  mountains.  For  miles  in  th^  a- 
terior,  these  mountains  lay  one  above  anoth- 
er, and  on  the  summits  of  those  most  distant, 
snow  and  ice  continue  from  year  to  year,  per- 
haps from  age  to  age. 

From  the  time  of  our  departure,  we  had 
not  noticed  a  wild  animal  of  any  description, 
although  we  were  directly  in  the  usual  trail  of 
the  hunters  ;  and  we  began  to  think  there 
could  not  be  much  sport  in  the  neighborhood 
after  all,  and  were  glad  that  we  had  not  en- 
cumbered ourselves  with  fire-arms.  Good 
and  trusty  knives,  each  of  us  had,  and  we 
were  as  valiant  as  most  men  usually  are  out 
of  the  reach  of  danger.  The  day  now  began 
to  wane,  and  we  started  homeward ;  but  had 
proceeded  a  few  hundred  yards  only,  when 


*-:l 


AND    NEWFOUNDLAND. 


61 


we  heard  a  rushing  among  the  bushes,  and 
cracking  of  sticks,  as  of  some  wild  animal, 
hovering  on  our  path,  to  take  advantage  of 
our  want  of  deadly  preparation.  We  now 
began  to  fear  foul  play — and  to  concert  plans 
of  operation — for  there  was  evidently  some 
enemy  near,  whom  it  was  our  duty  to  circum- 
vent if  possible.  Take  him,  we  could  not, 
if  he  should  happen  to  prove  one  of  the  brown 
bears  of  the  island,  for  they  are  good  fight- 
ers, having  an  instinctive  dislike  to  the  biped 
race ;  and  unless  better  skilled  than  we  then 
were  in  the  use  of  the  knife,  he  would  prob- 
ably have  mastered  a  couple  such  as  we  were. 
My  comrade  grew  pale  with  affright,  and  step- 
ping close  up  to  me,  and  asking  in  a  low 
voice, "  if  we  had  not  better  scratch  gravel?*^ 
he  actually  took  to  his  heels,  like  one  bereft 
of  his  wits,  before  I  had  time  to  reply  to  his 
ludicrous  question.  Over  the  rocks,  down 
precipices,  and  through  the  bushes,  my  friend 
sped  as  fast  as  his  legs  would  carry  him,  look- 
ing neither  to  the  right  nor  left,  until  some 
half  mile  onward,  his  foot  tripping,  he  pitch- 
ed headlong  into  a  quagmire ! — I  was  so  di- 
verted with  his  consternation  and  flight  that  I 
had  no  leisure  to  bo  frightened    myself,  and 

d3 


■I 


i 


62 


FIVE    MONTHS    IN    LABRADOR 


\ 


by  the  time  I  overtook  him,  all  danger  was 
past,  if  indeed  there  had  been  any.  My 
friend's  dress  was  a  light  gray,  and  at  a  dis- 
tance so  very  nearly  resembled  the  color  of 
the  bushes,  that  I  could  distinguish  nothing 
but  his  broad-brimmed  tarpaulin  as  he  dashed 
away  through  the  thickets.  When  I  came 
up  with  him,  I  found  he  had  crawled  out 
from  his  miry  bed,  a  good  deal  more  fright- 
ened than  hurt.  After  cleansing  himself  as 
well  as  he  could  from  the  mud  and  filth,  and 
poking  out  his  tarpaulin  from  the  mire,  we 
jogged  on  towards  the  harbour,  and  soon  had 
about  us  a  company  of  jovial  fellows,  making 
themselves  merry  at  our  expense. 

The  reader  of  these  pages  will  perceive, 
that  I  do  not  attempt  any  thing  like  a  regular 
journal  of  travels  and  adventures.  This  at 
best  would  be  dry  and  I'ninteresting.  Nei- 
ther  can  it  be  expected,  that  during  a  resi- 
dence of  a  few  weeks  on  such  an  island  as 
Newfoundland,  I  should  be  able  to  add  ma- 
terially to  the  mass  of  information  already 
before  the  world.  My  object  is  to  give  my 
impressions  of  scenes  that  passed  under  my 
observation,  and  convey  to  the  reader  a  faith- 
ful delineation  of  the  general  appearance  of 


AND    NEWFOUNDLAND. 


63 


was 
My 

I  dis- 
)r  of 
thing 
ished 
came 
1  out 
right- 
elf  as 
I,  and 
e,  we 
n  had 
aking 

ceive, 
Bgular 
his  at 
Nei- 
resi- 
nd  as 
d  ma- 
Iready 
ve  my 
er  my 
faith- 
nee  of 


the  island,  and  the  manners  and  customs  of 
the  inhabitants.  I  am  encouraged  to  do  this, 
in  the  hope  that  it  may  prove  of  some  trifling 
benefit  to  the  pubHc,  inasmuch  as  there  are 
in  all  the  published  accounts  which  I  have 
seen  respecting  Newfoundland,  great  inaccu- 
racy and  imperfection. 

Among  all  nations,  savage  or  civilized, 
some  sort  of  ceremony  has  usually  attended 
inff  their  marriao^e  contracts.  None  are  so 
debased  but  they  deem  some  formality  and 
publicity  necessary  ;  and  in  proportion  as  the 
parties  are  civilized  and  enlightened,  has  the 
rite  become  sacred,  and  been  solemnized  by 
the  sanctions  of  religion.  The  shore  inhab- 
itants of  this  island,  as  has  already  been  seen, 
are  far  from  being  enlightened;  yet  they  con- 
sider that  no  marrii^ge  would  be  binding,  un- 
less the  customary  formality  attended  it,  al- 
though the  presence  of  a  magistrate  or  eccle- 
siastic is  by  no  means  deemed  essential. 
When  the  young  couple  have  agreed  upon 
the  nuptial  ceremony,  the  prevailing  custom 
here  is  to  give  an  entertainment,  at  which  all 
who  hear  of  the  preparations,  consider  them- 
selves invited.  At  the  time  appointed,  some 
one  of  the  number,  who  has  a  goodly   pres- 


64 


FIVE    MONTHS    IN    LABRADOR 


ence,  and  suitable  voice,  is  selected  to  per- 
form the  office  of  clergyman.  He  is  decked 
out  with  clothes  resembling  those  of  an  En- 
glish curate  in  full  dress,  and  puts  on  a  mock 
gravity  for  the  occasion.  The  parties  and 
witnesses  being  all  arranged  about  the  room, 
the  officiating  parson  enters  with  a  stately 
step,  and  enjoining  strict  silence  and  atten- 
tion upon  the  company,  proceeds  to  join  the 
young  candidates  in  matrimonial  bonds.  This 
is  generally  done  in  words  similar  to  those  in 
use  amongst  us.  The  mock  parson  concludes 
the  ceremony  by  a  long  extempore  address, 
touching  the  various  duties  of  the  marriage 
state,  usually  delivered  in  a  vein  of  broad  hu- 
mor, that  very  often  ends  in  loud  and  boister- 
ous merriment.  Should  the  parson  prove 
dull  and  uninteresting  in  this  part  of  the  cer- 
emony, he  becomes  the  subject  of  the  rude 
jests  of  the  company ;  and,  on  the  contrary, 
should  he  carry  his  coarse  jokes  too  far,  so  as 
to  offend  the  not  over-scrupulous  delicacy  of 
the  females  present,  they  fall  upon  him,  and 
strip  him  of  his  clerical  robes,  which  is  look- 
ed upon  as  a  sort  of  signal  for  all  sorts  of  fun 
and  revelry.  As  was  the  fashion  in  the  by- 
gone days  of  New-England,  the  guests  par- 


bridi 


one 
glad! 
peep 
the  i 
wear 
ofth 
R 
ants 


AND    NEWFOUNDLAND. 


65 


per- 
Bcked 
1  En- 
mock 

and 
room, 
lately 
atten- 
in  the 
This 
ose  in 
eludes 
idress, 
irriage 
>ad  hu- 
>oister- 
prove 
le  cer- 
3  rude 
ntrary, 
r,  so  as 
:acy  of 
m,  and 
3  look- 
of  fun 
the  by- 
ts  par- 


take freely  of  intoxicating  liquors  ;  and  a  feast 
is  served  up  at  t  he  conclusion,  composed  of 
such  delicacies  as  the  ability  of  the  parties 
enables  them  to  provide — generally  a  cod's- 
head  chowder,  or  boiled  salmon,  roasted  ven- 
ison, or  raccoon.  The  concluding  part  of 
the  ceremony  would  be  considered  highly  im- 
proper amongst  a  better  educated  people — 
but  is  nevertheless  a  common  custom  on  the 
island.  As  soon  as  the  married  pair  hive  re- 
tired to  rest,  as  many  of  the  guests  as  are 
fond  of  the  sport,  prepare  themselves  with 
small  bags,  ten  or  fifteen  inches  in  length,  in- 
to which  they  pour  a  quantity  of  pea^;  or 
beans,  and  with  these  in  their  hands,  they 
burst  into  the  room,  and  dance  round  the 
bridal  bed,  shaking  their  bags  of  peas,  and 
sometimes  beating  them  with  sticks,  and  sing- 
ing coarse  and  vulgar  songs.  The  ordeal  is 
one  which  the  young  married  folks  would 
gladly  avoid — but  custom  among  such  a  rude 
people  is  stronger  than  law.  They  must  bear 
the  infliction  patiently ;  and  the  night  often 
wears  away  before  their  tormentors  get  tired 
of  the  revelry,  and  wend  their  way  homeward. 
Rude  as  are  these  ceremonies,  the  inhabit- 
ants look  upon  them  as  binding — and  as  sa- 
e1  "i 


M 


m 


FIVE    MONTHS    IN    LABRADOR 


^;f?i 


"•r- 


credly  regard  their  covenants  made   under 
such   sanctions,  as  though  made  under  the 
forms  of  civil  or  ecclesiastical  law.    The  read- 
er will  understand,  that  the  customs  I  have 
been  describing  are  those  of  the  shore  inhab- 
itants of  Newfoundland — a  mixed  population 
of  all  nations,  generally  very  ignorant,  but 
living  together  in  comparative  peace  and  reg. 
ularity,  without  the  ordinances  or  observances 
of  religion  or  of  law.     A  great  portion  of 
their  time  is  spent  either  upon  the  water,  or 
in  the  forests ;  and  the  instinct  of  self-preser- 
vation, and  certain  regulations  as  to  hunting 
and  fishing,  which  all  savages  as  well  as  en- 
lightened   people    tacitly    submit    to,   keep 
them  in  a  state  of  general  quiet  and  good 
neighborhood.     They  are  naturally  kind  and 
hospitable  towards  one  another — are  by  no 
means  deficient  in  natural  sagacity — and  need 
only  the  steady  and  sure  aids  of  cultivation 
and  of  religious  instruction,  to  make  them  as 
useful  and  respectable  as  the  wealthy  traders 
and  factors,  who  come  from  Europe  to  spend 
a  few  years  on  the  island,  and  grow  rich  upon 
the  labors  and  industry  of  these  poor  people. 
The  reader  should  not  be  led  to  suppose, 
from  the  facts  here  stated,  that  Newfoundland 


AND    NEWFOUNDLAND. 


67 


under 
er  the 
e  read- 
I  have 
inhab- 
ulation 
nt,  but 
id  reg. 
vances 
lion  of 
iter,  or 
•preser- 
lunting 
I  as  en- 
,   keep 
1  good 
nd  and 
by  no 
id  need 
ivation 
lem  as 
traders 
spend 
1  upon 
Deople. 
ippose, 
ndland 


is  without  law.  On  the  contrary,  the  moth- 
er country,  here  as  elsewhere  in  all  her  pos- 
sessions, maintains  her  power.  But  the  na- 
tives of  the  interior,  and  the  shore  inhabitants 
of  whom  we  have  been  speaking,  are  called 
upon  neither  to  pay  taxes  nor  tithes ;  and  so 
long  as  they  refrain  from  public  violence  and 
interference  with  the  wealthier  and  aristocrat- 
ic classes — so  long  as  they  are  content  to  be 
peaceable  hewers  of  wood  and  drawers  of  wa- 
ter to  the  **  upper  ranks  in  society" — and  sub- 
mit to  the  exactions  of  the  traders — they  are 
let  alone  by  the  authorities  both  in  church  and 
state !  It  is  a  rare  thing  to  see  a  civil  magis- 
trate leaving  his  stately  dwelling  in  St.  Johns, 
or  Placentia,  to  go  among  these  rude  people, 
to  protect  the  innocent,  or  punish  the  guilty. 
It  might  soil  the  ermine  of  these  dignitaries 
to  come  in  contact  with  these  poor  fishermen, 
and  skin-clad  hunters  !  They  are  consequent- 
ly left  to  settle  their  own  disputes  in  their  own 
way,  without  interference  or  oversight  on  the 
part  of  the  magistracy.  An  armed  sloop  is, 
however,  annually  sent  round  to  the  different 
ports  of  the  island,  having  admiralty  officers 
and  acting  magistrates  on  board,  who  make 
inquiries  into  the  state  of  public  affairs — and 


68 


FIVE    MONTHS    IN    LABRADOR 


1 1 


^Hi 


( 


11 ; 


this  show  of  governmental  supervision  is  the 
extent  in  most  cases  of  their  pubHc  superin- 
tendance.  Whenever  disputes  arise  among 
the  inhabitants,  that  are  not  otherwise  settled, 
or  explained,  to  the  satisfaction  of  the  parties 
and  iheir  friends,  a  regular  knock-down  en- 
sues, in  which  he  who  is  stoutest  wins  the 
cause — but  the  conquerer  is  sometimes  oblig- 
ed to  "  foot  the  bill  of  costs,"  by  giving  the 
vanquished  party  and  the  witnesses  ittendingy 
as  much  liquor  as  they  choose  to  drink  ! 
Black  eyes,  and  broken  heads,  are  consequent- 
ly matters  of  no  very  rare  occurrence. 

In  their  families  and  intercourse  with  one 
another,  these  people  are  kind,  companiona- 
ble, and  benevolent.  In  cases  of  sickness, 
or  difficulty  of  any  kind,  they  will  go  miles  to 
watch  by  the  bedside  of  a  suffering  friend,  or 
to  aid  him  in  any  time  of  want  or  peril.  The 
stranger  approaching  their  habitations,  is  al- 
ways welcomed  with  kindness,  and  if  his  de- 
portment aiiongthem  is  exemplary,  they  urge 
him  to  prolong  his  stay,  and  kindly  offer  to 
instruct  him  in  all  the  mysteries  of  fishing  and 
the  chase. 

They  are  extravagantly  fond  of  the  canine 
race — and  the  noble  animal  known  as  the 


AND    NEWFOUNDLAND. 


69 


Newfoundland  dog,  may  be  said  to  be  almost 
necessary  to  t^ieir  existence.     Every  family 
has  one  or  more  of  them.     He  is  an  inmate 
of  the  hut,  and   fares  almost  as  well  as  the 
children  of  the  family.     Whenever  the  little 
ones  go  lo  their  sports,  the  dog  accompanies 
them,  watches  them  while  at  play,  and  escorts 
them  safely  home.     Should  one  of  the  little 
urchins  fall  into  the  water,  the  dog  will  rescue 
him  from  drowning  ;  and  the  habits  and  ser- 
vices of  the  faithful  animal  endear  him  to  ev- 
ery inhabitant  of  the  island.     This  dog,  of 
the  genuine   Newfoundland  breed,  has  a  re- 
markably pleasing  countenance,  is  exceeding- 
ly  docile,  and  of  great   size   and   sagacity. 
They  are  so  strong,  that  the  inhabitants  often 
yoke  them  in  pairs  to  a  light  sledge,  and  in 
the  winter  haul  their  wood  from  the  forests 
three  or  four  miles  in  the  interior.     In  the 
performance  of  this  task,  they  are  so  expert 
as  to  need  no  drivers.     After  having  deliver- 
ed their  load,  they  will   return  to  the  woods 
if  their  masters  remain,  and  are  ther  reward- 
ed with  something  to  eat.     The  feet  of  this 
dog  are  more  palmated   than  those  of  other 
species,  which  structure  enables  it  to  swim 
very  fast,  to  dive  easily,  and  bring  up  any 

Fl 


I  ■ 


70 


FIVE   MONTHS    IN    LABRADOR 


li 


"R^ 


thing  from  the  bottom  of  the  water.  It  is^ 
indeed,  almost  as  fond  of  the  water  as  if  it 
were  an  amphibious  animal.  So  sagacious  is 
it,  and  so  prompt  in  lending  assistance,  that 
it  has  saved  the  lives  of  numberless  persons, 
who  were  on  the  point  of  drowning  ;  and  this 
circumstance,  together  with  its  uniform  good 
temper,  has  justly  rendered  it  a  universal  fa- 
vorite. 

Innumerable  anecdotes  are  related  of  the 
sagacity  of  the  Newfoundland  dog,  one  of 
which  I  will  mention.  A  short  time  before 
I  visiied  the  island,  a  little  child  belonging  to 
a  family  hving  but  a  few  rods  distant  from  the 
shore,  strayed  away  and  climbed  up  on  one 
of  the  fish  stages,  that  are  built  to  overhang 
the  water,  so  that  in  dressing  the  fish  the  of- 
fals maybe  swept  off  into  the  sea.  The  lit- 
tle fellow  in  running  about  on  the  stage,  ac- 
cidentally fell  off  into  the  water,  where  it  was 
twelve  feet  deep.  The  old  dog,  who  had 
been  snoozing  away  upon  the  shore,  the  in- 
stant he  heard  the  splash  in  the  water,  jump- 
ed in  after  the  child,  and  seizing  it  by  its 
clothes,  dragged  the  little  suffer  (>ut  of  the 
water,  and  leaving  it,  ran  to  the  door  of  the 
house,  and  setting  up  a  dismal  howl,  at  once 


AND    NEWFOUNDLAND. 


71 


alarmed  the  mother  of  the  child.  Following 
the  dog,  who  bounded  back  to  the  object  of 
its  care,  she  found  that  her  child  was  saved, 
and  clasped  him  to  her  bosom. 


72 


FIVE   MONTHS    IN    LABBADOR 


CHAPTER  IV. 


'•  >■»■ » 


Extent  of  the  fisheries. — Rights  of  the  Americans.— Tribute 
to  the  character  of  New-England  fishermen. — Herring 
fisherj, — Cod  fishery  upon  the  banks. — Coast  and  shore 
fisheries. — Statistics. — C^raves  of  fishermen. 

The  fishery,  covering  the  banks  which  sur- 
round the  island  of  Newfoundland,  the  coasts 
of  New-England,  Nova  Scotia,  the  Gulf  of 
St.  Lawrence,  and  Labrador,  furnishes  the 
richest  treasure,  and  the  most  beneficent  trib- 
ute that  the  ocean  pays  to  earth.  By  the 
pleasure  of  the  Creator,  it  has  been  constitu- 
ted one  fishery,  extending  in  the  open  seas 
that  surround  that  island  to  little  less  than  five 
degrees  of  latitude  from  the  coast,  spreading 
along  the  whole  northern  coast  of  this  conti- 
nent, and  insinuating  itself  into  all  the  bays, 
creeks  and  harbors,  to  the  very  borders  of  the 
shores.  For  the  full  enjoyment  of  an  equal 
share  in  the  fishery,  it  is  necessary  to  have  a 
nearly  general  access  to  every  part  of  it. 
The  habits  of  the  game  which  it  pursues  be- 
ing so  far  migratory,  that  they  are  found  at 


AND    NEWFOUNDLAND. 


73 


different  periods  most  abundant  at  different 
places,  sometimes  populating  the  banks,  and 
at  others  swarming  close  upon  the  shores. 
The  latter  portion  of  the  fishery,  however, 
has  always  been  considered  as  the  most  val- 
uable, inasmuch  as  it  affords  the  means  of 
drying  and  curing  the  fish  immediately  after 
they  are  caught,  which  cannot  be  effected  up- 
on the  banks. 

By  the  law  of  nature,  this  fishery  belonged 
to  the  inhabitants  of  the  regions  in  the  neigh- 
borhood of  which  it  was  situated.  By  the 
conventional  law  of  Europe,  it  belonged  to 
the  European  nations  which  had  formed  set- 
tlements in  these  regions.  France,as  the  first 
principal  settler  in  them,  long  claimed  the  ex- 
clusive right  to  it.  Great-Britain,  at  length, 
moved  in  no  small  degree  by  the  value  of  the 
fishery  itself,  made  conquest  of  all  those  re- 
gions from  France,  and  Hmited  by  treaty  with- 
in a  narrow  compass  the  right  of  France  to 
any  share  in  the  fishery.  Spain,  under  some 
claim  of  prior  discovery,  for  some  time  enjoy- 
ed a  share  of  the  fishery  upon  the  banks,  but  t 
renounced  it  prior  to  the  American  revolution. 

The  right  of  the  Americans  to  a  participa- 
tion in  these  fisheries  is  as  sacred  as  that  of 


tr 


* 


74 


FIVE    MONTHS    IN    LABRADOR 


',i> 


».  I. 


the  subjects  of  Great  Britain.     By  an  act  of 
parliament,  passed  during  the  reign  of  Ed- 
ward VI.  in  1547,  the  Newfoundland  fishery 
was  declared  an  unlicensed  fishery,  free  to  all 
the  inhabitants  of  the  realm.     The  war  of 
our  revolution  did  not  abrogate  the  right;  or 
if  it  did,  the  treaty  of  1783  expressly  recog- 
nized and  acknowledged  it.     It  is  a  right  of 
inestimable  value  to  the  people  of  the  United 
States.     According  to  Seybert's  Statistics,  in 
1807,  there  were  more  than  seventy  thousand 
tons  of  American  shipping  employed  in  the 
cod-fishery  alone.     In  that  and  the  four  pre- 
ceding years,  according  to  the  same  writer, 
the  exports  from  the  United  States  of  the  pro- 
ceeds of  the  fisheries,  averaged  three  millions 
of  dollars  a  year.     In    1816,  soon  after  the 
war,  there  were  upwards  of  sixty-eight  thou- 
sand tons  employed,  and  in  1836,  more  than 
a  hundred  thousand.     These  fishing  vessels 
are  navigated  by  the  hardiest,  most  skilful  and 
best  mariners  in  the  world.     Every  person, 
(says  Dr.  Seybert)  on  board  our  fishing  ves- 
sels, has  an  interest  in  common  with  his  asso- 
ciates.; their  reward  depends  upon  their  in- 
dustry and  enterprise.  ,,^ , 

To  the  immense  number  of  men  engaged 


AND    NEWFOUNDLAND. 


75 


in  these  employments,  and  to  their  wives  and 
children,  the  cod-fishery  is  their  daily  bread, 
their  property,  their  subsistence.  To  how 
many  thousands  more  are  the  dangers  and  la- 
bors of  their  lives  subservient  ?  Their  game 
is  not  only  food  and  raiment  to  themselves, 
but  to  millions  of  other  human  beings. 

One  of  the  most  distinguished  of  Ameri- 
can statesmen  pays  the  following  glowing 
tribute  to  the  fishermen  of  America.   "  There 
is  something  in  the  very  occupation  of  fisher- 
men, not  only  beneficent  in  itself,  but  noble 
and  exalted  in  the  qualities  of  which  it  re- 
quires  the    habitual  exercise.     In  common 
with  the  cultivators  of  the  soil,  their  labors 
contribute  to  the  subsistence  o  f  mankind,  and 
ihey  have  the  merit  of  continual  exposure  to 
danger,  superadded  to  that  of  unceasing  toil. 
Industry,  frugality,   patience,   perseverance, 
fortitude,  intrepidity,  souls  inured  to  perpet- 
ual conflict  with   the  elements,  and   bodies 
steeled   with   unremitting  action,  ever  grap- 
pling with  danger,  and  familiar  with  death — 
these  are  the  properties  to  which  the  fisher- 
man of  the  ocean  is  formed  by  the  daily  labors 
of   his  life.     These  are  the   properties  for 
which  He  who  knew  what  was  in  man,  the 

v3 


■C.  t-::-r 


fi 


76 


FIVE    MONTHS    IN    LABRADOR 


ri 


1       «■•■). 


r 


Saviour  of  mankind,  sought  his  first,  and 
found  his  most  faithful,  ardent,  and  undaunt- 
ed disciples,  among  the  fishermen  of  his  coun- 
try. In  the  deadliest  rancours  of  national 
wars,  the  examples  of  later  ages  have  been 
frequent  of  exempting,  by  the  common  con- 
sent of  the  most  exasperated  enemies,  fish- 
ermen from  the  operation  of  hostilities.  Nor 
is  their  devotion  to  their  country  less  conspic- 
uous than  their  usefulness  to  their  kind. 
While  the  huntsman  of  the  ocean,  far  from 
his  native  land,  from  his  family,  and  his  fire- 
side, pursues,  at  the  constant  hazard  of  his 
life,  his  game  upon  the  bosom  of  the  deep, 
the  desire  of  his  heart  is,  by  the  iiature  of  his 
situation,  ever  intently  turned  towards  his 
home,  his  children,  and  his  country.  To  be 
lost  to  them,  gives  their  keenest  edge  to  his 
fears ;  to  return  v^ath  the  fruits  of  his  labors 
to  them,  is  the  object  of  all  his  hopes. 

"  By  no  men  upon  earth  have  these  quali- 
ties and  dispositions  been  more  constantly 
exemplified  than  by  the  fishermen  of  New- 
England.  From  the  proceeds  of  their  peril- 
ous and  hardy  industry,  millions  have  been 
added  to  the  exports  of  the  United  States. 
This  is  in  fact,  so  much  national  wealth  ere- 


AND    NEWFOUNDLAND. 


77 


ated  by  the  fishery.  With  what  branch  of 
our  commerce  is  it  unconnected  ?  Into  what 
artery  or  vein  of  our  political  body  does  it 
not  circulate  wholesome  blood?  To  what 
sinew  of  our  national  arm  has  it  not  impart- 
ed firmness  and  energy?  The  fishermen  du- 
ing  our  late  war  were  upon  the  ocean,  and 
upon  the  lakes,  fighting  the  battles  of  their 
country.  Turn  back  to  the  records  of  the 
revolution — ask  Samuel  Tucker,  himself  one 
of  the  number,  a  living  example  of  the  char- 
acter common  to  them  all,  what  were  the 
fishermen  of  New-England,  in  the  tug  of  war 
for  independence  ?  Appeal  to  the  heroes  ot 
all  our  naval  wars — ask  the  vanquishers  of 
Algiers  and  Tripoli — ask  the  redeemers  of 
our  citizens  from  the  chains  of  servitude, 
and  of  our  nation  from  the  humiliation  of 
annual  tribute  to  the  barbarians  of  Africa — 
call  on  the  champions  of  our  last  struggle 
with  Britain — ask  Hull,  and  Bainbridge — ask 
Stewart,  Porter  and  Macdonough,  what  pro- 
portion of  New-England  fishermen  were  the 
companions  of  their  victories,  and  sealed  the 
proudest  of  our  triumphs  with  their  blood  !" 
It  has  been  justly  observed,  that  he  who 
draws  a  cod  fish  from  the  sea,  gives  a  piece 


i^ 


V 


78 


FIVE    MONTHS    iN    LABRADOR 


'I':;  '.I 


I    y 


of  silver  to  his  country.  The  eiTeci  of  the 
fisheries  upon  the  trade  and  wealth  of  tlie 
country,  and  the  influence  it  has  upon  its  des- 
tinies, are  not  generally  understood  or  real- 
ized. As  a  nursery  for  seamen,  its  influence 
has  already  been  seen  in  the  character  of  our 
navy — and  an  inspection  of  the  annual  ton- 
nage statements  of  the  treasury,  will  show 
what  a  mine  of  wealth  these  fisheries  are  to 
the  Union. 

The  shores,  the  creeks,  the  inlets  of  the  Bay 
of  Fundy,  the  Bay  of  Chaleurs,  and  the  Gulf 
of  St.  Lawrence,  the  Straits  of  Bellisle,  and 
the  Coast  of  Labrador,  appear  to  have  been 
designed  by  the  God  of  Nature  as  the  great 
ovarium  of  fish : — the  inexhaustible  reposi- 
tory of  this  species  of  food,  not  only  for  the 
supply  of  the  American,  but  of  the  Europe- 
an continent.  At  the  proper  season,  to  catch 
them  in  endless  abundance,  little  more  of  ef- 
fort is  needed,  than  to  bait  the  hook  and  pull 
the  hne,  and  occasionally  even  this  is  not 
necessary.  In  clear  weather,  near  the  shores, 
myriads  are  visible,  and  the  strand  is  at  times 
almost  literally  paved  with  them. 

The  herring  fishery  is  one  of  the  diflferent 
branches  of  business  on  the  coasts  of  New- 


'■!% 
% 


AND    NEWFOUNDLAND. 


79 


foundland  and  Labrador,  subsidiary,  however, 
to  the  other  and  more  productive  employ- 
ments of  the  fishermen.     Of  all  migrating 
fish,  the  herring  take  the  most  adventurous 
voyages.     They   are  found  in   the  greatest 
abundance   in  the  high  northern  latitudes. 
The  quantity  of  insect  food  which  the  north- 
ern seas  provide  is  very  great,  whence,  in  that 
remote  situation,  and  defended  by  the  rigour 
of  the  climate,  they  live  and  multiply  beyond 
expression.     They  annually  appear  about  the 
bays  and  harbours  of  Newfoundland  by  the 
middle  of  May,  usually  in  myriads.     The  wa- 
ter seems  alive  with  them,  and  their  phalanx, 
in  extent,  depth,  and  closeness,  sometimes 
covers   an  extent  of  shore  as  broad  as  the 
island  itself.     Sometimes  they  smk  for  the 
space  of  five  or  ten  minutes,  then  rise  again 
to  the  surface,  and  in  bright  weather,  reflect 
a  variety  of  splendid  colors,  like  a  field  be- 
spangled with  purple,  gold  and  azure.     The 
herring  are  pursued   by  hordes  of  enemies, 
that  thin  off  their  squadrons.     The  fin  fish 
and  the  cacholet  swallow  barrels  at  a  yawn ; 
the  porpoise,  the  grampus,  the  shark,  and  the 
whole  numerous  tribe  of  dog-fish,  when  the 
shoals  of  herring  appear,  cease  their  war  up- 


i' 
I 


i '  i 


80 


FIVE    MONTHS    IN    LABRADOR 


'.  !. 


\'y. 


on  each  other,  and  make  them  an  easy  prey. 
Flocks  of  sea-fowl  are  also  seen  to  hover 
over  them,  and  destroy  great  numbers.  The 
herring  thus  pursued,  crowd  close  together, 
like  sheep  when  frightened,  and  endeavor  to 
save  themselves  by  approaching  the  shores, 
and  sometimes  filling  the  bays,  inlets  and  har- 
bours. The  fishermen,  watching  their  pro- 
gress, are  prepared  to  give  them  a  proper  re- 
ception, and  by  nets  made  for  the  purpose, 
take  hundreds  of  barrels  at  a  draught.  These 
shoals  of  herring  appear  in  the  spring  and 
fall ;  those  taken  in  the  latter  season,  in  Au- 
gust and  September,  being  usually  barrelled 
and  preserved.  The  spring  herring  are  prin- 
cipally taken  to  be  used  for  bait  in  the  cod- 
fishery. 

The  Bank  Fishery  is  carried  on  in  vessels 
generally  from  60  to  100  tons  burthen  and 
manned  with  eight  or  ten  men  each.  They 
commence  their  voyages  early  in  March, 
and  continue  in  this  employment  until  the 
last  of  October,  in  which  time  ihey  make  two 
and  sometimes  three  fares  to  the  United  States, 
bringing  their  fish  home  to  be  cured.  The 
produce  of  their  trips,  if  successful,  after 
paying  the  shoresmen  the  expense  of  making 


AND    NEWFOUNDLAND. 


81 


iyr   curing,   generally    furnishes  a  sufficient 
quantity  of  dried    lish  to  load  the   vessel  for 
Europe.  Those  vessels  employed  in  the  cod 
fishery  require  cables  of  from    160   to  180 
fathoms  in  length.    They  must  always  keep 
their  sails  bent  to  the  yards,  so  as  to  be  ready 
in  case  of  accident  to  the   cable,  or  any  of 
those  adverse  occurrences  to  which  tempests 
or  the  casuaUties  incident  to  anchoring  nearly 
in  mid  ocean,  must  expose  them.     They  pur- 
chase salted  clams  for  bait,    which  they   pro  - 
cure  at  considerable  expense,  and  take  with 
them  from  the  port  whence  they  sail.    They 
fish  night  and  day,  when  they  find   the  fish 
to  bite  well,  which  is  not  always  the  case, 
and  haul  their  cod  in  a  depth  of  water  of  40 
to  60  fathoms.  The  length  of  the  cod  seldom 
exceeds  three  feet,  and  the  conformity  of    its 
organs  is  such  as  to  render  it  nearly  indiffer- 
to  the  choice  of  its  food.     The  voracity  of  its 
appetite    prompts  it  to    swallow  indiscrimi- 
nately almost  every  substance  which  it  is  ca- 
pable of  gorging  ;    glass  and  even  iron  have 
been  found  in  its  stomach ;  and  by  inverting 
itself  it  has  the  power  of  discharging  those 
indigestible  contents.     During  our  fishing  on 
the  coast,  we  often  noticed    hard  substances 


i  \ 


^ 

i 


82 


FIVE    MONTHS    IN    LABRADOR 


I 


v.: 


I  i 


found,  in  •  the  stomach  of  the  cod.  Oar 
supply  of  fresh  bait  being  nearly  exhausted 
on  one  occasion,  an  Irishman  on  board  ex- 
pressed great  concern,  as  our  success  had  not 
been  very  encouraging;  "for,  said  he,  "the  fish 
of  the  straits,  be  a  very  different  animal  from 
those  of  the  ovvid  counthry,  for  they  vi^ill  bite 
the  hook."  "Ah,  Pat;  but  will  they  bite  with- 
out bait?"  said  the  captain.  "  Ah,  indade  ye 
wasn't  after  thinking  the  Irish  cod  fools 
enough  for  that,  was  ye !"  replied  Patrick,  and 
proceeded  to  explain  his  apparent  blunder, 
concluding  it  was  best  after  all  to  "put  on  the 
shiners." 

The  business  of  fishing  is  reduced  to  a  regu- 
lar system.  The  fishermen  range  themselves 
along  the  sides  of  the  vessel,  each  person 
being  provided  with  lines  and  hooks.  On  my 
first  essay  at  fishing,!  proceeded  to  tie  on  my 
hooks.  An  old  fisherman  perceiving  the  awk- 
ward manner  in  which  I  was  proceeding,  told 
me  tlie  "cod  would  laugh  at  such  a  craft  as  I 
was  fixing."  I  threw  itaside,a  little  vexed,and 
told  him  I  would  not  be  the  laughing  stock  of 
the  fish  and  fishermen,  too;  and  that  if  they 
wanted  me  to  work,  they  must  fix  me  out 
with  a  craft.   I  was  told,  however,  that  it  was 


AND    NEWFOUNDLAND. 


83 


the  duty  of  each  one  to  provide  his  own 
fishing  gear  After  some  httle  delay,  the  old 
fisherman  kindly  initiated  me  into  the  myste- 
ries of  the  "  hook  and  line/'  and  by  this  time 
I  found  out  that  there  was  something  more  to 
do  than  ''just  to  tie  it  on." 
After  catching  fish  upon  the  banks,  they  are 
headed  and  opened  by  the  fishermen,  who 
place  them  in  the  hold  of  the  vesseL  in  an 
uncured,and  consequently  in  some  degree  in  a 
partially  perishing  state  ;  and  after  having 
obtained  a  fare,  they  return  with  it  to  the 
United  States,  to  be  cured  or  dried,  and  pre- 
pared for  exportation.  Before  this  can  be  done 
or  they  can  be  landed,  the  fish  is  generally 
more  or  less  deteriorated,  becomes  softer,  and 
part  of  it  makes  an  inferior  quality  of  fish, 
called  Jamaica  fish.  The  proporiioi  f  this  is 
much  greater  than  it  would  be,  'vere  th^  fish 
dried  and  cured  shortly  after  being  taken,  as 
is  the  case  with  the  Coast  and  Bay  fisheries. 

The  Coast  and  Labrador  Fisheria  are 
prosecuted  in  vessels  of  from  40  to  120  tons 
burthen,  carrying  a  number  of  men,  according 
to  their  respective  sizes,  in  about  the  same 
proportion  as  the  vessels  on  the  Banks.  They 
commence  their  voyages  in  May,  and  get  on 


84 


FIVE    MONTHS    IN    LABRAnoK 


■I' 


■ 


the  fishing  ground  about  the  first  of  June, 
before  which  time  bait  cannot  be  obtained. 
This  bait  is  furnished  by  a  small  species  of  fish 
called  capling,  which  strike  in  shore  at  that 
season  of  the  year,  and  are  usually  followed 
by  immense  shoals  of  cod  fish,  which  feed  up- 
on them.  Each  vessel  selects  its  own  fishing 
ground,  along  the  coast  of  the  Bay  of  Chal- 
eurs,  the  Gulf  of  St  Lawrence,  the  Straits  of 
Bellisle,  the  coast  of  Labrador,  even  as  far  as 
Cumberland  Island,  and  the  entrance  of  Hud- 
son's Bay,  thus  improving  a  fishing  ground 
reaching  in  extent  over  twenty  three  degrees 
of  latitude. 

In  choosing  their  situation,  the  fishermen 
generally  seek  some  sheltered  and  safe  harbor 
or  cove,  where  they  anchor  in  about  six  or 
eight  fathoms  water,  unbend  their  sails,  stow- 
ing them  away  below,  and  literally  making 
themselves  at  home.  They  dismantle  their 
vessels,  and  convert  them  into  habitations,  at 
least  as  durable,  and  perhaps  as  comfortable, 
as  those  of  the  ancient  Scythians.  They  then 
cast  a  net  over  the  stern  of  the  vessel,  in 
which,  from  day  to  day,  a  sufficient  number  of 
capling  are  caught  to  supply  them  with  bait. 
Each  vessel  is  supplied  with  boats,  in  number 


AND    NEWFOUNDLAND. 


85 


varying  according  to  the  size  of  the  vessel  and 
number  of  men,  each   boat   manned  by  two 
men.     They   leave  the   vessel    early  in  the 
morning,  and  seek  the  best  or  a  sufficiently 
good   spot  for  fishing,  which    is    frequently 
found  within  a  few  yards  of  the  vessel,  and 
very  rarely  more  than  one  or  two  miles   dis- 
tant.      Here   they    usually  haul  the  fish,  as 
fast  as  they  can  pull  their  fines ;  and  some- 
times the  fish  have  been  found  so   abundant 
that   they   could   be  scooped  into  the    boat 
without  even  hook  or  line.    There  is  no  prey 
of  which  the  cod  seems  to  be  so  fond  as  the 
capling.  It  is  a  beautiful  fittle  fish,  from  four 
to  six  inches  in  length,  of  bright  silver  color 
and   weighing  from    one  to    three    ounces. 
According  to  the  plenty  or  scarcity  of  those 
capling  do  the  fishermen   prognosticate  the 
result  of  their  labors,   Wherever  they  appear 
in  schools,  the  cod  is  sure  to  follow  in  vast 
numbers — and  they  have  been  known  to  pur- 
sue the  capling  in  such  quantities  and   with 
such   voracity,  as  to   run  in   large   numbers 
quite  out  of  the  water  on  to  the  shores.    The 
boats  return  to  the  vessel  about  nine  o'clock 
in  the  morning  to  breakfast,  put   their  fish 
on  board,  salt  and  split  tliem,  and  after  having 

gI 


86 


FIVE    MONTHS    IN    LABRADOR 


■■■ii' 


1='.: 


If 


fished  lor  several  days,  in  which  time  the 
salt  has  struck  sufficiently  into  the  fish  first 
caught,  they  carry  thcin  on  shore  and  spread 
and  dry  them  on  the  rocks  or  temporary 
flakes.  This  routine  is  followed  every  day, 
with  the  addition  of  attending  to  such  as  have 
been  spread,  and  carrying  on  board  and  stor- 
ing away  those  that  have  become  sufficiently 
cured,  until  the  vessel  is  filled  'vith  dried  fish 
fit  for  an  immediate  market,which  is  geiierally 
the  case  by  the  middle  or  iast  of  August. 
The  vessel  is  then  put  in  trim  for  the  home- 
ward voyage,  and  proceeds  directly  to  her 
destined  port.  The  fish  thus  caught  and 
cured  are  esteemed  the  best  in  the  markets. 

Some  of  the  fishermen  cure  a  part  of  their 
fish  as  they  catch  them,  on  the  beach,  rocks, 
(fee.  and  the  rest  af*er  they  return  home. 
And  there  are  many  cargoes  of  dry  fish 
shipped  yearly  from  the  coast  of  Labrador 
direct  for  Europe*  The  usual  markets  for 
these  fish  are  in  the  Mediterranean,where  they 
prefer  small  fish,  and  the  greater  part  of  all 
the  fish  taken  up  the  bay  and  near  Labrador 
are  very  small. 

Besides  the  vessels  of  larger  tonnage  which 
I  have  already  mentioned  os  engaged  in  the 


AND    NEWFOUNDLAND. 


87 


3  the 

1  first 

pread 

lorary 

r  day, 

s  have 

I  stor- 

^ently 

;d  fish 

ierally 

ugust. 

home- 
to  her 

t    and 

arkets. 

)f  their 
rocks, 
home. 
y  fish 
Drador 

ets  for 
re  they 
of  all 
brador 

J  which 
in  the 


fisherieSjthere  is  also  a  description  of  vessels 
called  jiggers,  or  small  schooners,  of  from  30 
to  45  tons,  and  carrying  four  or  five  hands, 
that  fish  in  the  south  channel,  on  the  shoals 
and  Cape  Sables.  There  is  still  another  de- 
ception of  fishing  vessels,  commonly  called 
Chebacco  Boats,  or  Pink  Sterns,  of  from  10 
to  28  tons,  carrying  two  men  and  a  boy  each. 
Both  these  classes  fish  for  the  home  market 
and  the  West  Indies,  except  the  very  first 
they  take  early  in  the  spring,  which  being  of 
very  superior  quality  are  usually  sent  to  the 
markets  in  Spain,  where  they  always  bring  a 
great  price. 

There  are  also  great  numbers  of  vessels 
employed  in  the  mackerel,  shad  and  salmon 
fishing.  And  a  late  writer  estimating  the 
number  of  American  vessels  of  all  descriptions 
employed  in  these  fisheries  and  their  annual 
produce,  gives  the  following  result : 

Whole  number  of  vessels,  2,332 

Measuring  tons,  115,940 

Number  of  men  employed  15,059 

Salt  consumed         hhds.  265,370 

Quantity  of  fish  taken  and  cured, 

quintals,  1,353,700 

Barrels  of  oil  made  50,520 


88 


FIVE    MONTHS    IN    LABRADOR 


H, 


n 


Barrels  of  mackerel  taken,  50,000 

The  facts  which  I  have  here  taken  some 
pains  to  embody  in  relation  to  the  fishing 
interests  of  New-England,  will  serve  to  give 
the  reader  an  idea  of  their  great  value  and  im- 
portance to  the  country.  I  trust  the  account 
has  not  proved  uninteresting  to  the  reader. 

Great  numbers  of  fishermen  have  lost  their 
lives  in  their  perilous  occupation  on  these  coasts 
by  being  overtaken  by  sudden  squalls  while 
out  in  their  boats,  or  driven  by  gales  far  out 
to  sea  beyond  the  reach  of  succor.  At  a  little 
distance  back  from  Boone  harbor,  is  a 
burial  ground  appropriated  to  the  sepulture 
of  those  foreigners  who  have  perished  on  the 
coast,  and  whose  bodies  were  recovered  from 
the  ocean.  An  old  weather-beaten  board, 
nailed  to  the  trunk  of  a  fir  tree,  marks  the 
place  of  burial ;  and  I  noticed  there  were 
inscriptions  upon  it,  nearly  defaced,  repre- 
senting the  names  and  ages  of  some  of  the 
poor  fishermen  whose  remains  reposed  near 
the  spot.  One  or  more  graves  were  matkcd 
by  a  rude  cross,  erected  by  some  relative  or 
friend,  designating  the  catholic  faith  of  llio 
individual  whose  death  it  commemorated. 


AND    NEWFOUNDLAND. 


89 


CHAPTER  V. 


i:^gg«f> 


Departure  from  Boone  bay.— Mound  near  Shallow  bay.— - 
Little  settlement  at  Cowhead. — Sails  set  for  Labrador.— 
Straits  of  Bellisle. — Islands  of  icej  their  appearance  and  vast 
extent. — First  view  of  the  Labrador  coast. — Sterility  of  the 
soil.— Vegetable  Productions. — Esquimaux  burial  place.-— 
Ancient  custom  towards  the  sick. 

After  two  weeks  successful  operation  in 
fishing  in  the  neighborhood  of  Boone  bay,  the 
capling  becoming  less  plenty,  we  found  it 
necessary  to  leave.  Accordingly  we  took  a 
tug  at  the"  crooked  iron,"  and  made  out  to 
sea.  In  about  eight  hours  we  reached  Shallow 
bay,  thirty  miles  distant  and  came  again  to 
anchor.  Our  stay  here  was  to  be  brief,  and 
I  hurried  off  to  the  shore  to  make  observations. 
At  Cowhead,  a  httle  distance  from  the  bay, 
are  a  few  small  huts,  inhabited  by  fishermen. 
Beyond  these  and  southerly  facing  the  shore, 
are  a  few  acres  of  low  land,  covered  with  rank 
grass.  Pursuing  my  way  and  passing  a  point 
of  rocks  jutting  out  from  the  shore,  I  noticed 
a  sort  of  mound  or  embankment,  a  short  dis- 
tance inland,  very  much  resembling  some  of 
2q' 


0 


ri^  i 


90 


FIVE    MONTHS    IN    LABRADOR 


■VJ^ 


•I' 


*  t 

I 


^Ml 


*l^ 


those  Indians  mounds  which  are  found  near 
the  banks  of  the  Ohio  river.  The  embank- 
ment is  about  fifteen  feet  above  the  level  of 
the  water,  nearly  level  upon  the  top,  and  thir- 
ty or  forty  feet  in  wjdth  ;  in  length  it  stretch- 
es away  several  hundred  feet,  and  connects 
with  a  narrow  isthmus  that  forms  a  commu- 
nication between  Cowhead  and  the  main 
land.  It  thus  forms  two  bays,  or  harbors, 
one  of  which  we  were  moored  in,  Shallow 
bay,  and  the  other  St  Paul's  bay. 

On  Cowhead  there  were  at  the  time  of  my 
visit,  eighteen  inhabitants.  One  family  has 
resided  on  this  spot  for  forty  years.  An  aged 
cou*)le,  pa^'iarchs  of  their  little  flock,  reared 
a  large  family,  who  have  settled  around  them, 
and  live  by  fishing  and  hunting.  They  have 
this  little  world  entirely  to  themselves.  No 
one  molests  them — nobody  intrudes  upon 
their  society  ;  and  they  know  neither  the  dis- 
tinctions which  others  of  their  race  are  striv- 
ing for,  nor  care  for  the  wealth  which  is  so 
eagerly  coveted  by  the  mass  of  mankind. 
The  forests  and  the  deep  furnish  them  with 
food  and  raiment;  and,  with  plenty  always 
before  them,  they  have  few  wants,  and  are 
blessed  with  almost  uninterrupted  health,  and 


AND    NEWFOUNDLAND. 


91 


long  life.  They  are  uncultivated  and  entire- 
ly uneducated.  Not  one  of  thenn  can  read 
or  write,  and  their  language  is  consequently 
rude.  But  they  are  ingenious  in  every  thing 
concerning  the  chase  and  the  fishery,  and  in 
the  dressing  of  the  skins  of  wild  animals, 
which  they  use  for  purposes  of  dress. 

On  the  27th  of  June,  we  set  ^  ^il  again,  di- 
recting our  course  across  the  S;   .its  of  Bel- 
isle  towards  Labrador.     The  wind  being  fair, 
and  the  weather  pleasant,  our  passage  proved 
delightful.     The  prevailing  winds  having  for 
some  weeks  been  northerly,  the  straits  were 
full  of  masses  of  ice,  some  of  immense  size, 
and  towering  up  like  mountains,  rendering 
our  passage  at  times  quite  dangerous.     These 
floating  islands  of  ice,  called  icebergs,  are  ob- 
jects of  great  interest  to  the  beholder.     Of 
the  most  fantastic  forms,  and  splendid  colors 
as  seen  from  the  refraction  of  the  sun's  light, 
the  voyager  gazes  upon  them  as  they  wheel 
slowly  by  his  little  vessel, with  intense  interest. 
The  ice  which  obstructs  the  navigation  of 
the  arctic  seas  (says  a  late  writer)  consists  of 
two  very„  different  kinds  ;  the  one  produced 
by  the  congelation  of  fresh,  and  the  other  by 
that  of    salt  water.     In  those  inhospitable 
g3  V 


3!' 


i- 


IMAGE  EVALUATION 
TEST  TARGET  (MT-3) 


/, 


€// 


>.^^fe 


fe 


/. 


V. 


11.25 


bilU    |2.5 

|5o  ^^     MlB 

2.0 


IX 


;  i 
i 


Photographic 

Sciences 
Corporation 


fV 


4 


■^ 


<> 


4 


23  WEST  MAIN  STREIT 

WEBSTER,  N.Y.  MSSO 

(716)  •72-4S03 


^1% 


^ 


i 


92 


FIVE    MONTHS    IN    LABRADOR 


\ 


tracts,  the  snow  which  annually  falls  on  the 
islands  or  continents,  being  again  dissolved 
by  the  progress  of  the  summer's  heat,  pours 
forth  numerous  rills  and  limped  streams, 
which  collect  along  the  indented  shores,  and 
in  the  deep  bays  enclosed  by  precipitous  rocks. 
There,  this  clear  and  gelid  water  soon  freezes, 
and  every  successive  year  supplies  an  addi- 
tional investing  crust,  till,  after  the  lapse,  per- 
haps, of  several  centuries,  the  icy  mass  rises 
at  last  to  the  size  and  aspect  of  a  mountain, 
commensurate  with  the  elevation  of  the  sur- 
rounding cliffs.  The  melting  of  the  snow, 
which  is  afterwards  deposited  on  such  enor- 
mous blocks,  likewise  contributes  to  their 
growth  ;  and,  by  filling  up  the  accidental 
holes  or  crevices,  it  renders  the  whole  struc- 
ture compact  and  uniform.  Meanwhile  the 
principle  of  destruction  has  already  begun 
its  operations.  The  ceaseless  agitation  of  the 
sea  gradually  wears  and  undermines  the  base 
of  the  icy  mountain,  till  at  length,  by  the 
action  of  its  own  accumulated  weight,  when 
it  has  perhaps  attained  an  altitude  of  a  thou- 
sand, or  even  two  thousand  feet,  it  is  torn 
from  its  frozen  chains,  and  preci|»itated,  with 
a  tremendous  plunge,  into  the  abyss  below. 


^^..  .. 


AND    NEWFOUNDLAND. 


93 


This  mighty  launch  now  floats  like  a  lofty  is- 
land on  the  ocean  ;  till,  driven  southwards  by 
winds  and  currents,  it  insensibly  wastes  and 
dissolves  away  in  the  wide  Atlantic. 

Such  I  conceive  to  be  the  real  origin  of  the 
icy  mountains,  or  icebergs,  entirely  similar  in 
their  formation  to  the  glaciers  which  occur 
on  the  flanks  of  the  Alps  and  the  Pyrennees. 
They  consist  of  a  clear,  compact  and  solid 
ice,  which  has  the  fine  green  tint  verging  to 
blue,  which  ice  or  water,  when  very  pure,  and 
of  a  sufficient  depth,  always  assumes.  From 
the  cavities  of  these  icebergs,  the  crews  of 
the  northern  whalers  are  accustomed,  by 
means  of  a  hose,  or  flexible  tube  of  canvass, 
to  fill  their  casks  easily  with  the  purest  and 
softest  water.  Of  the  same  species  of  ice, 
the  fragments  which  are  picked  up  as  they 
float  upon  the  surface  of  the  ocean,  yield  the 
adventurous  navigator  the  most  refreshing 
beverage. 

It  was  long  disputed  among  the  learned, 
whether  the  waters  of  the  ocean  are  capable 
of  being  congealed,  and  many  frivolous  and 
absurd  arguments,  of  course,  were  advanced 
to  prove  the  impossibility  of  the  fact.  But 
the  freezing  of  sea  water  is  established  both 


i, 


94 


FIVE   MONTHS    IN    LABRADOR 


I  >      '' 


by  observation  and  experiment.  The  prod- 
uct, however,  is  an  imperfect  sort  of  ice,  ea- 
sily distinguished  from  the  result  of  a  regular 
crystallization  :  it  is  porous,  and  incompact. 
It  consists  of  spicular  shoots,  or  thin  flakes, 
which  detain  within  their  interstices  the 
stronger  brine ;  and  its  granular  spongy  tex- 
ture has,  in  fact,  the  appearance  of  congealed 
syrup,  or  what  the  confectioners  call  water- 
ice.  This  saline  ice  can,  therefore,  never 
yield  pure  water ;  yet  if  the  strong  brine  im- 
prisoned in  it  be  first  suffered  to  drain  off 
slowly,  the  loose  mass  that  remains  will  melt 
into  a  brackish  liquid,  which  in  some  cases 
niay  be  deemed  fit  for  use. 

The  fields  and  other  collections  of  floating 
ice  are  often  discovered  at  a  great  distance, 
by  that  singular  appearance  on  the  verge  of 
the  horizon,  which  the  Dutch  seamen  term 
ice-blink. 

It  is  a  stratum  of  liquid  whiteness  evident- 
ly occasioned  by  the  glare  of  light  reflected  ob- 
liquely from  the  surface  of  the  ice  against  the 
opposite  atmosphere.  This  shining  streak, 
which  looks  always  brightest  in  clear  weath- 
er, indicates,  to  the  experienced  navigator, 
twenty  or  thirty  miles  beyond  the  limit  of 


AND    NEWFOUNDLAND. 


95 


direct  vision,  not  only  the  extent  and  figure, 
but  even  the  quaUty  of  the  ice.  The  bUnk 
from  packs  of  ice,  appears  of  a  pure  white, 
while  that  which  is  occasioned  by  snow  fields 
has  some  tinge  of  yellow. 

The  mountains  of  hard  and  perfect  ice  are 
the  gradual  production,  perhaps,  of  many 
centuries.  Along  the  western  coast  of  Green- 
land, they  form  an  immense  rampart,  which 
presents  to  the  mariner  a  sublime  spectacle, 
resembling  at  a  distance,  whole  groups  of 
churches,  mantling  castles,  or  fleets  under 
full  sail.  Every  year,  especially  in  hot  sea- 
sons, they  are  partially  detached  from  their 
seats,  and  whelmed  into  tlie  deep  sea.  In 
Davis'  Strait,  those  icebergs  appear  the  most 
frequent ;  and  about  Disco  bay,  where  the 
soundings  exceed  300  fathoms,masses  of  such 
enormous  dimensions  are  met  with,  that  the 
Dutch  seamen  compare  them  to  cities,  and 
often  bestow  on  them  the  familiar  names  of 
Amsterdam  and  Haerlem.  They  are  carried 
towards  the  Atlantic  by  the  current  which 
generally  flows  from  the  northeast,  and  after 
they  reach  the  warmer  water  of  the  lower  lat- 
itudes they  rapidly  dissolve,  and  finally  dis- 
appear, probably  in  the  space  of  a  few  months. 


96 


FIVE    MONTHS    IN    LABRADOH 


The  blocks  of  fresh  water  ice  appear  black 
an  they  float ;  but  show  a  fine  emerald  or 
beryl  hue  when  brought  upon  the  deck. 
Though  perfectly  transparent,  like  crystal, 
they  sometimes  enclose  threads  or  streamlets 
of  air-bubbles,  extricated  in  the  act  of  con- 
gelation. This  pure  ice,  being  only  a  fif- 
teenth part  lighter  than  fresh  water,  must 
consequently  project  about  one  tenth  as  it 
swims  on  the  sea.  An  iceberg  of  2000  feet 
in  height  would  therefore,  after  it  floated,  still 
rise  200  feet  above  the  surface  of  the  water. 
Such  perhaps  may  be  considered  as  nearly 
the  extreme  dimensions.  Those  mountains 
of  ice  may  even  require  more  elevation  at  a 
distance  from  land,  both  from  the  snow  which 
falls  on  them,  and  from  the  copious  vapors 
which  precipitate  and  congeal  on  their  sur- 
face. But  in  general  they  are  carried  for- 
ward by  the  current  which  sets  from  the 
northeast  into  the  Atlantic,  where,  bathed  in 
a  warmer  fluid,  they  rapidly  waste  and  dis- 
solve. Though  large  bodies  of  ice  are  often 
found  near  the  banks  of  Newfoundland,  they 
seldom  advance  much  farther,  or  pass  beyond 
the  48th  degree  of  latitude. 

Bellisle  island  is  situated  opposite  the  north 


.# 


AND    NEWFOUNDLAND. 


91 


east  end  of  Newfoundland,  about  equidistant 
from  that  and  Labrador.  It  is  about  twenty 
miles  in  circuit,  naked  and  barren,  and  desti- 
tute of  inhabitants.  The  shores  are  bold  and 
rocky,  and  in  some  places  precipitous, 
having  an  appearance  of  basaltic  formation. 
Shipwrecks  have  frequently  occurred  on  this 
island  during  tiie  dense  fogs  that  at  times  en- 
shroud it.  About  five  years  since  an  Ameri- 
can schooner,  benighted  in  the  fog,  struck  on 
the  rocks,  and  went  down  in  less  than  thirty 
minutes,  the  crew  having  barely  time  to 
escape  with  their  lives,  which  they  did  by 
clinging  to  the  rocks,  and  ultimately  reaching 
the  shore  above.  Here  they  wandered  about 
several  days,  unable  to  procure  food,  except 
a  few  roots  and  herbs  with  which  they  con- 
trived to  appease  their  hunger.  The  season 
was  rigorous,  and  they  had  no  clothing  save 
the  dresses  they  had  on  when  shipwrecked, 
and  those  were  miserably  torn  in  their  strug- 
gle to  ascend  the  rocks.  After  remaining 
some  days  at  this  island,  and  almost  despair- 
ing of  rescue,  they  succeeded  in  attracting 
the  notice  of  a  fishing  vessel ,  passing  through 
the  straits,  and  were  saved  from  a  miserable 
death. 


I 


f , . 


98 


FIVE    MONTHS    IN    LABRADOK 


At  the  distance  of  two  or  three  leagues, 
the  coast  of  Labrador  has  an  appearance  of 
nruch  regularity  and  evenness,  and  the 
dwarfish  shrubbery  gives  it  at  such  a  distance 
some  resemblance  to  a  productive  and  fertile 
But,  on  nearing  the  coast,  all  im- 


region. 


pressions  of  this  sort  vanish,  and  we  behold 
a  di'eary  and  barren  coast,  unmarked  by  any 
thing  that  looks  like  fertility  in  any  direc- 
tion. The  peninsula  of  Labrador  is  between 
eight  and  nine  hundred  miles  square,  and 
lies  between  the  50th  and  60th  degrees  of 
north  latitude.  It  is  bounded  southerly  by 
Canada  and  the  Gulf  of  St.  Lawrence;  on 
the  east  by  the  Atlantic  ocean ;  on  the  north 
by  Hudson's  straits,  and  on  the  west  by 
Hudson's  Bay.  It  was  discovered  in  1496, 
by  some  Portuguese  navigators,  who  named 
it  Terra  de  Labrador,  or  "  Ploughman's 
land,"  a  designation  to  which  it  seems  to 
have  very  little  title. 

The  whole  of  this  extensive  country,  as  far 
as  it  has  been  explored,  is  found  to  be  ex- 
tremely barren  and  dreary,  the  surface  every 
where  uneven,  and  covered  with  large  stones; 
the  mountains  devoid  of  herbage,  and  pro- 
ducing at  best  but  a  little  moss,or  a  few  blight- 


11 


AND    NEWFOUNDLAND. 


99 


ed  shrubs  :  and  the  valleys,  in  some  places, 
full  of  low  crooked  trees  of  the  pine  and 
birch  species.  The  southern  parts  present 
some  apper.rance  of  soil  that  might  be  im- 
proved for  cultivation,  and  near  some  of  the 
deep  bays  a  little  timber  may  be  found ;  but 
the  prevailing  aspect  of  the  whole  region  is 
a  heap  of  bare  and  frightful  rocks.  The 
highest  mountains  extend  along  the  eastern 
coast,  but  their  elevation  is  not  very  great — 
no  where  exceeding  3000  feet.  There  are 
vast  chains  of  lakes  and  ponds  throughout 
the  country  ;  but  they  are  not  deserving  the 
name  of  rivers,  and  are  nothing  more  than 
the  drains  from  the  lakes  and  ponds  of  the 
interior,  running  on  a  bed  of  solid  rock,some- 
times  broad,  but  rarely  of  any  depth.  The 
climate  is  extremely  rigorous,  the  winter  last- 
ing about  nine  months,  or  from  the  middle  of 
September  to  the  middle  of  June. 

The  coast  of  Labrador  is  remarkable  for 
its  hold  and  precipitous  shores.  At  a  place 
called  Lancellen,  so  named  from  its  natural 
position,  the  shore  is  a  bold  and  precipitous 
rock  formation,  two  hundred  feet  or  more  in 
height  above  the  water,  and  extending  for 
some  miles  on  the  coast.     I'his  bold  height  is 


tu 


#r 


^ 


100 


FIVE    MONTHS    IN    LABRADOR 


.'I 


h 


I 


1  t 


•% 


•'B 


surmounted  by  a  wide  extent  of  table  land, 
covered  in  sorfie  places  with  a  peat  moss, 
having  resemblance  at  a  distance  to  green 
clover,  but  is  worthless,  and  only  covers  a  cold, 
barren  and  thin  soil.  An  arm  of  the  sea  puts 
up  between  two  cliffs  on  the  southerly  coast,on 
the  right  of  which  stands  a  signal  house,  oc- 
cupied by  the  British  during  the  last  war. 
Near  this  are  the  crumbling  remains  of  an 
old  fort,  forming  nearly  a  semi-circle,  near 
which  a  rude  monument  pointed  out  the 
graves  of  twelve  persons  there  buried. 

Noticing  the  very  superficial  covering  of 
earth  beneath  which  the  mouldering  bones  of 
these  dead  men  were  deposited,  I  was  led 
to  inquire  into  the  reason  for  such  a  seeming 
neglect  of  suitable  burial.  The  cause  was  ex- 
plained to  me,  when  I  was  told  that  the  soil, 
on  that  part  of  the  coast,  was  scarcely  in  any 
place  found  to  be  more  than  eighteen  to  twen- 
ty-four inches  deep.  The  whole  peninsula 
seems  to  be  composed  of  a  solid  mass  of 
stone,  with  only  a  thin  stratum  of  earth,  gath- 
ered upon  its  surface  during  the  lapse  of  ages. 
I  was  told  that  in  &ome  instances  the  dead 
have  been  carried  miles,  in  order  to  find  some 
little  hollow,  in  which  the  earth  was  deeper^ 


AND    NKWFOUNDLAI.  i). 


101 


or  where  a  thicker  covering  could  be  scraped 
together  to  form  the  resting  place  of  the  de- 
parted. This  may  have  led  to  the  custom 
of  the  natives  in  that  country  in  burying 
their  dead.  I  visited  an  Esquimaux  tomb 
in  one  of  the  bays  of  Labrador.  It  was  lo- 
cated upon  a  little  island  in  the  bay,  formed 
by  the  flood  tide.  At  the  ebb,  I  could  reach 
it  without  wetting  my  feet.  The  sepulchre 
was  composed  of  a  rude  pile  of  stones  placed 
together  so  as  to  have  a  large  cavity  beneath, 
and  the  top  being  covered  by  a  tall  rank  grass 
or  sea  weed.  After  removing  two  tiers  of  the 
stone,I  could  see  the  bleached  and  mouldering 
remains  of  many  of  the  islanders,in  all  the  va- 
rious stages  of  decay.  Whole  families,  one 
after  another  answering  the  final  summons, 
may  have  been  thrown  into  this  rude  burial 
place. 

Among  the  Esquimaux  I  was  told  of  anoth- 
er custom  that  formerly  prevailed,  though, 
since  the  intercourse  of  Europeans  with  them, 
it  has  in  a  measure  been  overcome.  This 
was,  whenever  one  of  the  aged  of  a  family 
had  become  sick,  apparently  beyond  the  hope 
of  recovery,  to  bury  him.  He  was  wrapped 
up  in  his  rude  blankets,  and   taken   to  the 


v 


10^ 


riVK    MONTHS    IN    LABRADOR 


■i 


place  appointed, usually  at  some  distance  from 
his  dwelling.  Here  the  earth  would  be  clear- 
ed of  rubbish,  and  excavated  one  or  two  feet, 
according  to  the  depth  of  the  soil.  The 
sick  man  was  then  stretched  upon  his  earthy 
bed.  Beside  him  was  placed  his  favorite 
hunting  weapons,  or  whatever  article  he  was, 
while  in  health,  in  the  habit  of  using,  togeth- 
er with  an  empty  cup,  which  they  supposed 
he  would  need  in  the  long  pilgrimage  before 
him.  A  rude  arch  of  stone  was  then  erected 
over  him,  carefully  laid  up  so  as  not  to  press 
upon  his  body,  and  the  whole  was  covered 
with  a  thin  coat  of  earth.  Nothing  would 
exasperate  them  more  than  to  tear  open  one 
of  these  burial  places,  or  rob  its  inmates  of 
the  weapons  which  were  deposited  with  their 
remains.  Should  any  one  of  the  tribe  be  de- 
tected in  such  a  sacrilege,  he  would  be  pun- 
ished with  death,  and  his  whole  family  shun- 
ned, as  accursed  of  the  whole  race. 

Respecting  the  vegetable  productions  of 
Labrador,  I  can  give  merely  the  results  of  my 
limited  observation.  I  cannot  dwell  upon 
their  variety,  beauty,  or  quality,  for  the  whole 
may  be  comprised  in  a  meagre  list  of  shrubs 
and  trees  of  a  dwarfish  size,  and  a  kind  of 


AND    NEWFOUNDLAND. 


103 


ice  from 
be  clear- 
two  feet, 
il.  The 
s  earthv 
favorite 
he  was, 
» togeth- 
upposed 
;e  before 

I  erected 
to  press 
covered 

would 
5en  one 
lates  of 
th  their 
3  be  de- 
be  pun- 
r  shun- 

ons  of 
s  of  my 

II  upon 
whole 

shrubs 
ind  of 


moss,  and  lichen,  before  mentioned,  together 
with  here  and  there  a  running  vine  resem- 
bling the  ivy  of  New-England.  The  larg- 
est in  growth  are  the  spruce,  and  fir,  and 
white  birch,  which  are  found  in  the  valleys 
among  the  mountains.  I  noticed  a  number 
which  were  of  scores  of  years  standing,  yet 
iheir  trunks  had  not  grown  above  four  leet 
from  the  earth.  The  body  of  the  tree  was 
from  four  to  twelve  inches  in  diameter,  and 
the  top  a  perfect  knot  of  twigs  growing  to- 
gether so  as  to  form  a  web  almost  impene- 
trable to  the  snow  or  rain.  The  tops  of  some 
of  these  firs  branch  out  so  as  to  form  a  com- 
fortable shelter  beneath,  for  the  hunter  when 
overtaken  by  a  storm,  or  for  wild  animals  du- 
ring the  winter.  These  trees  are  used  for 
fuel,  and  are  cut  up  root  and  branch — they 
burn  rapidly,  being  full  of  a  resinous  sub- 
stance, much  harder  than  the  pitch  of  our 
common  pines.  There  is  another  kind  of 
dwarf  shrubbery,  growing  together,  and  al- 
most impenetrable,  witlfcut  the  use  of  the 
hatchet — ^generally  about  two  feet  high.  This 
is  also  used  for  fuel  in  the  summer  season. 
The  larger  trees  are  found  ten  or  twelve  miles 
in  the  interior,  whence  they  are  drawn  on 


i 


104 


FIVE    MONTHS    IN    LABRADOR 


if 


4 


sledges  upon  the  snow  and  ice  by  teams  of 
the  Esquimaux  dogs. 

A  species  of  long  coarse  grass,  the  wild 
ppTsnip,  and  a  variety  of  other  vegetables  are 
found  in  the  deep  valleys,  where  they  are  shel- 
tered from  the  northern  blasts,  and  nourish- 
ed by  the  sun's  rays.  Another  species  of 
grass  adapted  for  the  support  of  the  feather- 
ed tribes,  is  abundant  on  the  marshes  and 
banks  of  the  lakes  and  rivers.  An  herb  call- 
ed Wee-suck-a-pucka,  grows  in  most  parts  of 
the  country,  of  which  the  leaves,  and  espe- 
cially the  flowers,  make  a  very  agreeable  kind 
of  tea,  much  used  by  the  Indians  and  Euro- 
peans, not  only  for  its  pleasant  flavor,  but 
its  salutary  effects.  It  has  a  slight  aromatic 
taste,  is  considered  serviceable  in  rheumatism, 
for  strengthening  the  stomach,  and  promo- 
ting perspiration.  Another  herb,  named  by 
the  natives  jack-ashey-puck,  resembling  the 
creeping  box- wood,  is  used  with  tobacco, 
making  it  milder  and  pleasanter  in  smoking. 
Several  small  shrub#are  found  in  the  country 
which  bear  fruit,  the  principal  of  which  is 
called  the  baked  apple  berry,  so  named  by 
the  fishermen  from  its  kindred  taste  to  the 
common  baked  apple  of  the  states.     In  com- 


AND    NEWFOUNDLAND. 


105 


f'''l !!:! 


ams  of 

le  wild 
)les  are 
re  shel- 
ourish- 
cies  of 
ealher- 
es  and 
rb  call- 
)arts  of 
espe- 
le  kind 
Euro- 
r,  but 
Dinatic 
atism, 
Tomo- 
led  by 
ig  the 
3acco, 
3king. 
mntry 
ich  is 
ed  by 
to  the 


mon  seasons,  it  blossoms  about  the  first  of  Ju- 
ly, and  is  ripe  by  the  latter  days  of  August  ; 
the  fruit  is  of  a  pale  yellow  color,  soft  and 
juicy.  On  the  28th  of  August,  I  accom- 
panied the  captain  of  our  schooner,  and  sev- 
eral others  to  a  large  field  of  this  wild  fruit 
in  the  neighborhood  of  Red  bay,  where  we 
had  a  good  feast  of  this  very  agreeable  sub- 
stitute for  the  genuine  baked  apple.  The 
white  inhabitants  of  Labrador  have  attempt- 
ed to  cultivate  some  of  the  European  plants, 
but  succeed  in  raising  only  some  varieties  of 
turnips  and  cabbage,  on  patches  of  ground 
manured  by  the  offals  oi  the  fishery,  and 
these  productions  are  esteemed  as  great  deli- 
cacies. 


Hi 


ivm. 


I 


corn- 


106 


FIVE    MONTHS    IN    LABRADOR 


CHAPTER  VI. 


f 


h  i^ 


I 


M'^ 


White  inhabitants  of  Labrador  j  their  character  and  pursuits, 
— ^Tenure  of  property. — Animals  and  birds  of  the  penin- 
sula.— Eggs  on  Mecatina  isles. — Disputes  of  the  J^fova- 
Scotia  and  Yankee  fishermen. — Manner  of  taking  seals ; 
and  extent  of  the  fishery. — Mode  of  constructing  habita- 
tions.— Character  and  occupation  of  females.— Prevalence 
of  intemperance. — Sagacity  and  value  of  the  Esquimaux 
dog. 

As  on  the  shores  of  Newfoundland,  so  up- 
on the  coast  of  Labrador,  the  Europeans 
have  established  settlements  at  every  point 
favorable  to  the  great  pursuits  of  fishing  and 
hunting.  These  settlers,  so  far  as  I  had  op- 
portunities of  forming  an  estimate  of  their 
character,  are  in  general  inferior  to  those  of 
Newfoundland,  in  capacity,  information,  and 
morals.  The  reader  will  see  at  once  that  I 
am  not  placing  them  very  high  in  the  scale 
of  civilization.  There  are  none  among  them 
who  can  read,  or  write,  save  the  few  traders 
on  the  coast,  and  these  are  in  general  sadly 
deficient  in  mercantile  knowledge  and  honor. 
The  shore  inhabitants,  in  some  instances, 
amass  a  small  property,  by  fortunately  obtain- 
ing possession  of  some  good  sealing  post,  or 


AND   NEWFOUNDLAND. 


107 


fishing  stand,  and  by  superior  improvements 
in  the  accommodations  of  their  cabins,  or  lit- 
tle patches  of  cultivated  ground.  The  ten- 
ure of  soil  here  is  that  of  the  squatters — he 
who  pitches  upon  a  tract,  holds  it  by  virtue 
of  possession,  and  no  subsequent  interference 
disturbs  his  right  thus  acquired.  There  be- 
ing land  enough,  and  all  of  nearly  equal  qual- 
ity, there  is  little  difficulty  as  to  boundaries, 
and  he  who  wishes  to  claim  a  thousand  acres 
as  his  own,  can  be  as  easily  gratified  as  the 
more  humble  individual  who  is  content  with 
half  a  score. 

A  good  sealing  post  is  ranked  as  of  the 
most  valuable  species  of  property,  and  is 
transmitted  from  one  family  to  another ;  and 
sold,  sometimes  for  a  round  price.  Trespass 
upon  one  of  these  posts,  would  be  severely 
punished.  The  more  common  mode  of  seal- 
ing of  late  years,  however,  is  to  fit  out  ves- 
sels, and  search  for  these  amphibia  in  the 
straits  and  along  the  Gulf. 

The  great  employment  of  these  people 
during  the  summer  months  is  the  seal,  whale, 
cod,  and  salmon  fishery,  which  they  most  as- 
siduously pursue.  Indeed  their  principal 
means  of  subsistence  are  derived  from  these 


! 


108 


FIVfi    MONTHS    IN    LABRADOR 


^  'M 


\'^ 


'i 


pursuits.  Nature  has  so  determined  the  in- 
stinct of  these  various  tribes,  that  they  ap- 
pear in  regular  succession,  and  consequently 
the  pursuit  of  one  does  not  necessarily  inter- 
fere with  that  of  another.  Immediately  after 
the  ice  begins  to  break  up  in  the  spring,  the 
shore  inhabitants  prepare  themselves  for  the 
pursuit  of  the  seal,  usually  the  most  ardu- 
ous as  well  as  profitable  of  their  annual  em- 
ployments. This  lasts  about  four  or  five 
weeks.  After  this  commences  the  best 
season  for  the  cod-fishery.  The  salmon 
and  trout  catching  next  engages  attention, 
and  of  these  there  are  myriads  in  all  the 
streams  and  brooks  of  Labrador.  The  fe- 
males are  expert  in  this  business,  and  as  soon 
as  the  proper  time  arrives,  they  are  as  active- 
ly engagfid  as  the  males  with  their  hooks  and 
nets.  The  dog  fish  is  a  species  taken  in  large 
quantities  in  the  latter  part  of  the  season, 
principally  for  their  oil,  although  the  flesh 
is  used  in  the  winter  as  food  for  their  dogs. 
The  flesh  of  the  seal  is  also  preserved  for  sim- 
ilar purposes.  The  skin  of  the  dog  fish  is 
rough,  and  when  stretched  and  dried  is  used 
as  a  substitute  for  sand  paper.  Some  of  the 
finer  descriptions  are  used  for  the  purpose  of 


AND    NEWFOUNDLAND. 


im 


polishing  metal  substances,  and  sharpening 
edge  tools.  Portions  of  the  skin  of  this  fish 
are  selected  which  even  give  a  fine  edge  to 
the  razor. 

It  is  not  necessary  to  go  into  any  labored  de- 
scription of  the  animals  that  are  found  in  the 
interior  of  Labrador.  They  are  neither  very 
numerous  nor  various.  Reindeer,whose  venison 
is  excellent,are  tolerably  abundant.  Black  and 
white  bears  are  sometimes  seea  in  considerable 
numbers,especially  where  the  fish,being retard- 
ed in  their  progress  by  the  cataracts,  are  found 
collected  in  one  place.  Wolves,  foxes,  moun- 
tain cats,  martins,  beavers,  oilers,  hares,afew 
ermines,  and  a  plenty  of  porcupines,  are  the 
principal  quadrupeds  met  with  in  this  dreary 
region.  The  seal  is  an  animal  too  well  known 
to  all  readers  of  natural  history  to  need  de- 
scription here.  The  arctic  species  are  dis- 
tinguished by  their  great  numbers,  and  the 
various  or  rather  universal  purposes  to  which 
they  are  applied  by  the  natives.  They  fur- 
nish the  inhabitant  with  food  for  his  table,oil 
for  his  lamp,  clothing  for  his  person ;  even 
their  bones  and  skins  supply  materials  for  his 
light  portable  boats  and  his  summer  tents. 

The  more  permanent  feathered  inhabitants 
h2 


liM 


110 


FIVE    MONTHS    IN    LABRADOR 


i^ 


!|S 


n 


'it"J    ! 


of  Labrador  are  eagles,  hawks,  horned  owls, 
and  the  partridge.  Many  migratory  birds 
frequent  the  woods  and  lakes  during  the  sum- 
mer ami  autumn,  some  of  which  are  remark- 
able for  their  beautiful  plumage ;  but,  as  soon 
as  the  breeding  season  is  past,  they  seek  a 
happier  climate  before  the  approach  of  win- 
ter. The  curlews  are  extremely  abundant, 
and  when  well  grown,  are  excellent  food. 
They  appear  on  the  coast  in  the  beginning  of 
autumn  in  vast  flocks,  when  great  numbers 
are  taken  by  the  sportsmen. 

On  the  Mecatina  isles,  situate  in  the  Gulf 
of  St.  Lawrence,  and  near  the  Labrador 
coast,  immense  flocks  of  sea-fowl  throng, 
during  the  warm  season,  to  deposit  their  eggs. 
The  fishermen  not  unfrequently  gather  these 
eggs  by  hogsheads,  and  they  have  become  an 
article  of  traffic.  The  fishermen  from  Nova 
Scotia  have  long  claimed  these  birds  nests  as 
their  own,  and  until  Yankee  enterprise  cut 
in  for  a  share,  they  enjoyed  the  whole  of  the 
plunder.  Disputes  often  arise  between  the 
Yankee  and  Nova  Scotia  fishermen  as  to  the 
possession  of  these  treasures,  and  on  one  oc- 
casion the  dispute  rose  so  high,  that  the 
"  blue  noses,"  as  the  Nova  Scotians  are  call- 


AND    NEWFOUNDLAND. 


Ill 


led  by  Yankee  fishermen,  fortified  themselves 
with  *' king's  arguments,"  fire  arms,  deter- 
mined to  prevent  the  Yankees  from  carrying 
off  the  eggs.  But  Yankee  cunning  is  some- 
times a  match  for  any  argument.  They  knew 
that  these  egg  islands  were  usually  covered 
in  a  dense  fog  in  the  morning.  They  accor- 
dingly waited  off  shore  in  their  vessels,  until 
the  "blue  noses"  had  gathered  together  large 
quantities  of  eggs  upon  the  shore,  ready  for 
packing,  and  dismissed  their  hands  for  the 
night,  as  was  their  custom,  intending  on  the 
following  day  to  pack  their  eggs  in  casks  al- 
ready provided,  ana  take  them  aboard  their 
vessels.  When  the  morning  came,  and  the 
fogs  had  begun  to  clear  up,  the  "blue  noses" 
found  the  Yankees  had  been  there  before 
them,  and  packed  and  carried  off  all  their 
eggs.  The  affair  gave  rise  to  some  belliger- 
ent operations,but  finally  resulted  in  an  agree- 
ment of  the  parties  not  to  deny  to  each  oth- 
er a  reciprocity  in  the  matter  of  eggs.  And 
thus  this  storm  blew  over,  without  involving 
two  great  countries  in  war.* 

I  have  spoken  of  the  seal  fishery  as  one 
of  the  great  employments  of  these  people  of 
the  north.    They  are  taken  for  the  sake  of 

h3 


•  ff& 


112 


FIVE    MONTHS    IN    LABRADOR 


{ \' 


15   ¥^''- 


i    ! 


their  skins  and  the  oil  their  fat  yields.  They 
are  said  to  be  capable  of  being  tamed,  and 
to  be  very  fond  of  music.  It  is  remarked  of 
them,  that  instead  of  being  terrified  at  thun- 
der and  lightning,  they  are  rather  delighted, 
generally  come  on  shore  in  tempests  and 
storms,  and  even  quit  their  icy  abodes  to 
avoid  the  shock  of  the  tempestuous  waves. 
At  such  times  they  sport  in  great  numbers 
along  the  shore — the  elemental  conflict  seems 
to  divert  them,  and  the  heavy  rains  that  fall 
seem  to  enliven  them.  The  Icelanders  have 
a  curious  tradition  respecting  the  seals.  They 
believe  them  to  be  the  offspring  of  Pharaoh 
and  his  host,  who  were  converted  into  seals 
on  their  being  overwhelmed  in  the  Red  Sea. 
Were  the  race  of  this  creature  to  cease  to  ex- 
ist, the  Greenlander  would  be  rendered  almost 
unable  to  inhabit  his  rigid  clime,  as  it  is  par- 
ticularly from  them  that  he  derives  the  neces- 
saries of  life. 

The  manner  in  which  the  seal  is  taken 
is  usually  as  follows.  When  the  hunter 
pierceives  one,  hfe  passes  the  word  along  in 
low  tones  to  his  nearest  companion,  who  tel- 
egraphs the  signal,  till  all  in  the  boats  are  en- 
gaged in  the  chase ;  and  it  is  seldom  possible 


AND    NEWFOUNDLAND. 


113 


for  their  prey  to  escape.  The  seal  is  impetu- 
ous in  disposition,  and  having  once  discover- 
ed his  pursuers,  he  dives  repeatedly,  and  in 
different  directions,  to  confound  them ;  but 
becomes  at  length  so  short  breathed  by  his 
hurry,  that  he  cannot  remain  long  out  of  sight 
— and  as  the  pursuers  are  around  at  various 
points,  watching  the  favorable  moment,  one 
of  them  paddles  along  silently  in  his  rear, 
using  the  paddle  with  one  hand,  while  with 
the  other  he  is  getting  his  tackle  in  order. 
Advancing  near  enough,  for  he  is  sure  to 
measure  his  distance  with  accuracy,  he  flings 
the  dart,  and  scarcelv  ever  fails  to  strike.  The 
seal,  terrified  and  wounded,  dives  in  the  great- 
est terror  ;  but  a  float  being  attached  to  the 
dart  by  a  leathern  line,  he  is  soon  forced  up 
again,  and  .despatched. 

Another  mode  of  killing  the  seal  is  to  go 
to  the  caves  on  shore,  into  which  hordes  of 
seals  occasionally  enter.  When  the  sealers 
are  properly  stationed,  they  raise  a  simulta- 
neous shout^  at  which  the  affrighted  animals 
rush  out  in  great  confusion,  and  are  despatch- 
ed with  wonderful  quickness  by  a  single  blow 
on  the  nose  struck  with  a  club.  They  are 
very  tenacious  of  life,  when  struck  or  woun- 


"t. 


*•< 


114 


FIVE    MONTHS    IN    LABRADOR 


f 


i 


II: 


li 


12 

^1 


I  1 


ded  on  any  other  part  of  the  body. — The 
best  season  for  sealing  is  said  to  be  in  the 
months  of  March  and  April.  When  the 
boats  arrive  at  the  ice,  the  sealers  immedi- 
ately attack  the  animals  with  clubs,  and  stun 
them  by  a  single  blow  over  the  nose,  which 
mode  sometimes  enables  a  single  person  to 
destroy  a  great  number.  When  they  are 
seen  on  pieces  of  floating  ice,  they  are  hunt- 
ed by  means  of  boats,  each  boat  pursuin  g  a 
different  herd.  Should  the  seals  attempt  to 
leave  the  ice  before  the  arrival  of  the  boat, 
the  sealers  shout  as  loudly  as  possible,  and 
produce  such  amazement  in  the  seals  by  this 
uproar  as  to  delay  their  flight  until  the  boat 
arrives,  and  the  work  of  destruction  is  begun. 
Where  the  seals  are  very  numerons,  the  seal- 
ers stop  not  to  flay  those  they  have  killed, 
but  set  off  to  another  ice  field  to  kill  more, 
merely  leaving  one  man  behind  to  take  off 
the  skins  and  fat.  When  the  condition  of 
the  ice  forbids  the  use  of  boats,  the  hunter 
IS  obliged  to  pursue  the  seals  over  it,  jumping 
from  piece  to  piece,  until  he  succeeds  in  tak- 
ing one.  This  is  sometimes  a  horrible  busi- 
ness, since  many  of  the  seals  are  merely  stun- 
ndd,  and  occasionally  recover  after  they  have 


AND    NEWFOUNDLAND. 


115 


been  actually  flayed.  In  this  condition,  too 
shockingly  mangled  for  description,  they 
have  been  seen  to  make  battle,  and  even  to 
swim  off. 

The  number  of  seals  destroyed  in  an  ordi- 
nary season,  by  the  regular  sealers,  is  im- 
mense. A  single  ship  will  sometimes  obtain 
three  or  four  thousand  skins,  and  a  hundred 
tons  of  oil.  Whale  ships  have  accidentally 
fallen  in  with  and  secured  two  or  three  thou- 
sand of  these  animals  in  the  month  of  April. 
The  sealing  business,  however,  is  extremely 
hazardous ;  and  many  ships  with  all  their 
crews  have  been  lost  by  the  sudden  and  tre- 
mendous storms  occurring  in  the  arctic^seas, 
where  the  dangers  are  vastly  multiplied  by 
the  driving  of  immense  bodies  of  ice.  In 
one  storm  that  occurred  in  the  year  1774,  no 
less  than  five  seal  ships  were  destroyed  in  a 
few  hours, and  six  hundred  seamen  perished. 

As  «oon  as  the  first  snows  appear  in  au- 
tumn, the  inhabitants  of  Labrador  are  accus- 
tomed to  leave  their  fishing  grounds,  and  re- 
pair to  the  forests  of  the  interior,  in  search 
of  game.  They  are  expert  sportsmen  and 
trappers,  and  scarcely  ever  fail  of  success, 
unless  when  overtaken  by  one  of  those  sud- 


m 

m 


M 


.r 


^.«4., 


116 


FIVE    MONTHS    IN    LABRADOR 


I 


;|  1 


■ml' 


If 
h  ] 


i 


?^ 


den,  and  often  violent  snow-storms  which 
render  the  pursuits  of  the  hunter  perilous  in 
the  extr-eme. 

The  vice  of  intemperance  prevails  every 
where  among  the  European  settlers  of  Lab- 
rador. Scarcely  a  family  can  be  found  among 
them  who  do  not  habitually  use  intoxicating 
liquors.  Men,  women  and  children  alike  fall 
under  the  curse.  It  is  a  prolific  source  of 
diseases  to  the  inhabitants,  and  more  or  less 
are  cut  off  every  season  in  the  prime  of  life 
from  its  fatal  influences.  And  beside  the 
numbers  thus  destroyed,  there  are  many  in- 
stances of  fishermen  lost  through  intoxica- 
tion, by  being  unable  to  manage  their  craft, 
or  tumbling  overboard  in  drunken  stupor. 
The  following  fact  was  related  to  me  by  an 
inhabitant  of  Newfoundland,  in  speaking  of 
the  gross  intemperance  of  the  shore  inhabit- 
ants of  Labrador.  As  he  was  coasting  one  day 
up  the  Gulf,  during  a  rough  sea  and  high 
wind,  he  discovered  at  a  considerable  distance 
ahead  an  object  that  appeared  to-be  floating 
without  helm  or  guidance  upon  the  waves. 
He  hove  to,  in  order  to  ascertain  its  nature, 
and  soon  perceived  that  it  was  a  large  boat, 
having  a  man,  woman  and  three  children  on 


AND   NEWFOUNDLAND. 


117 


boftd.  The  man,  who  was  afterwards  found 
to  be  the  father  of  the  children,  was  dead 
drunk,  and  .he  mother  so  far  gone  under  the 
influence  of  hquor  that  she  had  no  more  ap- 
parent regard  for  her  children  tiian  for  the 
fish  in  the  depths  of  the  ocean.  The  eldest 
of  the  children  was  twelve  years  of  age,  and 
the  evil  practices  of  the  parents  had  been  fol- 
lowed by  their  unhappy  offspring,  who  were 
evidently  unconscious  of  any  danger.  The 
captain  of  the  Newfoundland  fishermen  kind- 
ly took  them  on  board,  and  when  they  had 
roused  from  their  stupor,  informed  them  of 
the  peril  to  which  their  intemperance  had  ex- 
posed them,  and  admonished  them  to  beware 
for  the  future.  But  far  his  timely  succor, 
they  would  inevitably  have  perished.  It  ap- 
peared on  inquiry  that  the  party  had  that 
morning  been  out  in  their  boat  to  purchase  a 
few  articles  in  a  neighboring  harbor,  and  that 
there  the  trader  had  phcd  them  well  with 
rum,  and  fitted  them  out  with  their  articles 
in  the  midst  of  a  gale,  heedless  whether  they 
perished  or  not. 

The  inhabitants  along  the  shore  usually 
have  two  dwellings,  one  for  the  summer  sea- 
son, and  another  for  the  winter ;  the  former 


1 


A4 


118 


FIVE    MONTHS    IN    LABRADOR 


H 


I' 


m 


k^-t' 


"if 


I 
f 


is  usually  situated  on  some  open  and  elevated 
spot,  where  a  free  circulation  of  the  air  can 
be  had,  and  the  latter  is  built  generally  be- 
neath some  shelving  rock  or  precipice,  or  high 
hill,  exposed  as  much  as  possible  to  the  south, 
and  sheltered  as  far  as  practicable  from  the 
wintry  blasts  of  the  north.  Most  of  these 
are  immediately  along  the  shore,  and  near 
the  water's  edge — such  situations  being  less 
exposed  to  the  violent  storms  of  the  arctic 
winters.  The  body  of  the  habitation  is  con- 
structed of  spruce  poles  placed  in  the  ground 
about  two  feet  asunder,  leaving  them  about 
four  or  five  feet  in  height.  These  poles  are 
then  thatched,  or  interwoven,  basket-fashion, 
with  spruce  twigs  and  saplings,  so  compactly 
as  almost  to  exclude  the  rain  and  air.  Raft- 
ers are  then  extended  from  each  of  these 
body  posts  or  poles,  and  meeting  at  the  top, 
form  a  conical  roof,  which  is  thatched  in  a 
similar  manner,  and  is  then  covered  with 
peat  moss,  which  renders  the  roof  perfectly 
tight  and  warm.  A  small  aperture  is  left  in 
the  top,  for  the  smoke  to  escape — all  the  rest 
of  the  building  is  made  close  and  tight. 
Within,  the  turf  and  gravel  is  scraped  off, 
leaving  the  rocky  floor  entirely  bare  and  gen- 


I 


Bva 

lir  can 
Iv  be- 
)r  high 
south, 
m  the 
'  these 
i  near 
ng  less 
5  arctic 
is  con- 
ground 

about 
les  are 
ashion, 
npactly 

Raft- 
if  these 
;he  top, 
3d  in  a 
id  with 
erfectly 
s  left  in 
the  rest 
I  tight, 
ped  off, 
nd  gen- 


AND    NEWFOUNDLAND. 


119 


©rally  smooth.  This  is  usually  sprinkled  with 
a  white  sand  from  the  sea  shore,  and  the  in- 
terior thus  presents  an  air  of  neatness,  while 
the  warm  fire  kept  up  within  renders  the  cab- 
in comfortable  even  in  the  coldest  weather 
of  this  inhospitable  climate. 

Were  the  females  of  Labrador  accustomed 
to  no  other  labor  than  the  mere  cooking  of 
food  for  their  families,they  would  have  a  large 
portion  of  their  time  to  spend  in  idle  employ- 
ments. But  they  engage  in  the  hard  and  la- 
borious toils  of  fishing  with  as  much  zeal  and 
activity  as  the  males.  When  the  salmon  and 
trout  fishing  commences,  the  women  and 
children  employ  themselves  assiduously  in  the 
sport,  and  are  often  out  night  and  day  while 
the  season  of  this  fishery  lasts.  At  the  fish 
stands,  while  the  cod  fishery  is  in  the  full  tide 
of  operation,  the  women  are  seen  among  the 
most  constant  and  dextrous  in  dressing  the 
fish,  thrown  up  by  the  fishermen.  Some  of 
these  females  will  dress  two  or  three  thousand 
fish  in  a  single  day.  In  their  general  appear- 
ance, form,  and  features,  the  females  of  Lab- 
rador are  inferior  to  those  of  New-Foundland 
— and  utterly  ignorant  as  they  are  of  every 
thing  beyond  the  narrow  circle  of  their  hum- 


120 


FIVE    MONTHS    Ilf    LABRADOR 


I   i. 


ble  employments,  the  standard  of  morals  is 
exceedingly  low.  Intemperance  is  a  vice  al- 
most as  common  among  the  females  as  males, 
and  where  such  is  the  case,  no  very  high 
value  is  placed  upon  the  virtues  of  chastity 
or  morality.  The  young  women  are  very  fond 
of  ornaments,  and  ingenious  in  the  manufac- 
ture of  work  cases  and  other  trinkets  from  the 
skins  of  birds  of  bright  and  beautiful  plum- 
age. I  saw  several  of  these  ingenious  speci- 
mens, and  the  young  ladies  who  wrought 
them  seemed  to  be  proud  of  their  efforts,  and 
were  highly  pleased  with  the  compliments  we 
bestowed  upon  their  ingenuity. 

One  mode  of  travelling  during  winter  pre- 
vails throughout  this  country,  both  amongst 
the  white  population  and  the  Esquimaux  In- 
dians. Every  family  keeps  a  kennel  of  dogs. 
This  animal,  much  valued  the  world  over, 
is  the  most  important  quadruped  of  the  arctic 
regions,  and  the  most  valuable  possession  of 
its  people,  who  have  succeeded  in  taming  and 
rendering  it  equally  valuable  for  draught  and 
for  hunting.  He  assists  them  to  hunt  the 
bear,  the  rein-deer,  and  the  seal.  In  winter 
he  is  yoked  to  a  sledge,  and  conveys  his  mas- 
ter over  the  trackless  snow,  or  hauls  home 


AND    NEWFOUNDLAND. 


121 


)ral9  is 
i^ice  al- 
;  males, 
high 
chastity 
ry  fond 
anufac- 
rora  the 
plum- 
i  speci- 
vrought 
•ts,  and 
ents  we 

ter  pre- 
imongst 
aux  In- 
of  dogs, 
d  over, 
e  arctic 
ssion  of 
ing  and 
ght  and 
unt  the 
1  winter 
his  mas- 
Is  home 


the  fuel  that  is  to  feed  the  fires  of  his  cabin. 
The  Esquimaux  dog  does  not  bark.  His  ears 
are  short  and  erect,  and  his  bushy  tail  curves 
over  his  back.  His  average  stature  is  one 
foot  ten  inches,  and  the  length  of  his  body, 
from  the  back  of  the  head  to  the  commence- 
ment of  the  tail,  is  two  feet  three  inches. 
His  coat  is  long  and  furry,  and  is  sometimes 
brindled,  sometimes  of  a  dingy  red,  black  and 
white,  or  wholly  black.  Some  naturalists 
consider  this  race  of  dogs  as  descended  from 
the  wolf  and  fox. 

The  manner  in  which  these  animals  draw 
the  sledge,  is  as  follows.  The  dogs  have  a 
simple  harness  of  deer  or  seal  skiuj  going 
round  the  neck  by  one  bight,  and  another  for 
each  of  the  fore  legs,  with  a  single  thong  lead- 
ing over  the  back,  and  attached  to  the  sledge 
as  a  trace.  Though  they  appear  at  first  sight 
to  be  huddled  together  without  regard  to 
regularity,  there  is  in  fact  considerable  atten- 
tion paid  to  their  arrangement,  particularly  in 
the  selection  of  a  dog  of  peculiar  spirit  and 
sagacity,  who  is  allowed  by  a  longer  trace,  to 
precede  the  rest  as  leader,  and  to  whom,  in 
turning  to  the  left  or  right,  the  driver  usually 
addresses  himself.    This  choice  is  made  with- 

ll 


'■4 


'^m 


It's 


122 


riVE    MONTHS    JN    LABRADOR 


I, 


out  regard  to  age  or  sex,  and  the  rest  of  the 
dogs  take  precedency,  according  to  their  train- 
ing or  sagacity,  the  least  effective  being  put 
nearest  the  sledge.  The  leader  is  usually  from 
eighteen  to  twenty  feet  from  the  fore  part  of 
the  sledge,  and  the  hindmost  dog  about  half 
that  distance ;  so  that  when  ten  or  twelve  are 
running  together,  several  are  nearly  abreast  of 
each  other.  The  driver  sits  quite  low,  on  the 
fore  part  of  the  sledge,  with  his  feet  over- 
hanging the  snow  on  one  side,  and  having  in 
his  hand  a  whip,of  which  the  handle  is  plaited 
a  little  way  down  to  stiffen  it,  and  give  it  a 
spring,  on  which  much  of  its  use  depends; 
and  that  which  composers  the  lash  is  chewed 
by  the  women,  to  make  it  flexible  in  frosty 
weather.  The  men  acquire  from  their  youth 
considerable  expertness  in  the  use  of  this 
whip,  the  lash  of  which  is  left  to  trail  along 
the  ground  by  the  side  of  the  sledge,  and 
with  which  they  can  inflict  a  very  severe  blow 
on  any  dog  at  pleasure.  Though  the  dogs 
are  kept  in  training  entirely  by  fear  of  the 
whip,  and  indeed,  without  it,  would  soon 
have  their  own  way,  its  immediate  effect  is 
always  detrimental  to  the  draught  of  the 
sledge ;  for  not  only  does  the  individual  that  is 


AND    NEWFOUNDLAND. 


123 


struck  draw  back,  and  slacken  his  trace,  but 
generally  turns  upon  his  next  neighbor,  and 
this  passing  on  to  the  next,  occasions  a  gener- 
al divergency,  accompanied  by  the  usual  yelp- 
ing and  showing  of  the  teeth.  The  dogs 
then  come  together  again  by  degrees,  and 
the  draught  of  the  sledge  is  accelerated ;  but 
even  at  the  best  of  times,  by  this  rude  mode 
of  draught,  the  traces  of  one  third  of  the 
dogs  form  an  angle  of  thirty  or  forty  degrees 
on  each  side  of  the  direction  in  which  the 
sledge  is  advancing.  Another  great  inconve- 
nience attending  this  mode  of  putting  the  dogs 
tOjbeside  that  of  not  employing  their  strength 
to  the  best  advantage,  is  the  constant  entan- 
glement of  the  traces,  by  the  dogs  repeatedly 
doubUng  under  from  side  to  side,  to  avoid  the 
whip;  so  that  after  running  a  few  miles,  the 
traces  always  require  to  be  taken  off  and 
cleared. 

With  heavy  loads,  the  dogs  draw  best 
with  one  of  their  own  people,  especially  a  wo- 
man, walking  a  little  way  ahead ;  and  in  this 
case  they  are  sometimes  enticed  to  mend 
their  pace  by  holding  a  mitten  to  the  mouth, 
and  then  making  the  motion  of  cutting  it 
with  a  knife  and  throwing  it  on  the  snow, 


124 


FIVE    MONTHS    IN    LABRADOR 


H 


when  the  dogs,  mistaking  it  for  meat,  hasten 
forward  to  pick  it  up.  The  women  also  entice 
them  from  the  huts  in  a  similar  manner.  The 
rate  at  which  they  travel  depends  of  course  up- 
on the  weight  they  have  to  draw,and  the  road 
on  which  their  journey  is  performed.  When 
the  latter  is  level,  and  very  hard  and  smooth, 
constituting  what  in  other  parts  of  the  world 
is  called  good  sleighing,  si^  or  seven  dogs 
will  draw  from  eight  to  ten  hundred  weight, 
at  the  rate  of  seven  or  eight  miles  an  hour,  for 
several  hours  together ;  and  will  easily,  under 
these  circumstances,  perform  a  journey  of 
fifty  or  sixty  miles  a  day.  On  untrodden  snow, 
five  and  twenty  or  thirty  miles  would  be  a 
good  day's  journey.  The  same  number  of 
well  fed  dogs,  with  a  weight  of  five  or  six  hun- 
dred that  of  the  sledge  included,  are  almost 
unmanageable,  and  will  on  a  smooth  road, 
sometimes  run  any  way  they  please,  at  the 
rate  of  ten  miles  an  hour.  Their  steady  em- 
ployment, however, gradually  accustoms  these 
animals  to  the  harness,and  they  become  docile, 
obedient,  and  beyond  all  other  animals  in  such 
a  climate  as  that  of  Labrador,  useful  to  the  in- 
habitants. 


It, 


AND    NEWFOUNDLAND. 


125 


hasten 

entice 
The 

se  up- 
le  road 

When 
Booth, 

world 
1  dogs 
weight, 
our,  for 
,  under 
ney  of 
n  snow, 
lid  be  a 
aber  of 
six  hun- 

almost 
h  road, 

at  the 
idy  em- 
ns  these 
e  docile, 
5  in  such 
D  the  in- 


CHAPTER  VII. 


Health  of  Labrador. — Account  of  the  natives.— Northern 
Indians  3  their  manners  and  customs  3  their  doctors  or  con- 
jurors J  neglect  of  the  sick  and  the  dead  3  singular  tra- 
ditions.—Description  of  the  dress,manuers  and  customs  of 
the  Esquimaux  Indians3  their  habitations  5  general  improv- 
idence 3  superstitious  belief,  and  universal  ignorance. 

The  inhabitants  of  Labrador  possess  one 
great  blessing,  of  which  regions  more  highly 
favored  in  all  other  respects,  are  often  de- 
prived. A  general  and  almost  universal 
health  naturally  pervades  the  settlements. 
Were  it  not  for  the  prevalent  vice  of  intem- 
perance, few,  comparatively  speaking,  of  this 
hardy  race  would  be  cut  off  in  youth  or  man- 
hood, but  might  probably  live  to  a  good  old 
age.  Many  instances  were  pointed  out  to 
me  of  great  longevity,  and  I  frequently  urged 
upon  those  young  men  whom  I  casually  met 
on  the  shor^.s,  the  importance  of  temperance 
to  health  and  long  life,  and  happiness  here 
and  hereafter  :  but  was  usually  met  with  some 
rude  jest  in  reply,  or  flat  denial  of  the  bad 
effects  of  intoxicating  liquors.  It  will  be  a 
long  time  before  this  destroying  and  consum- 
i2 


P26 


FIVE    MONTHS    IP      LABRADOR 


"D 


y 


fe'l 


"^1 


■iivi 


■i.    ,i 


ing  evil  will  be  eradicated  from  among  the 
inhabitants  of  Labrador. 

Having  more  than  once  alluded  to  the  na- 
tives of  this  country,  it  may  be  proper  that  1 
should  give  some  particulars  concerning  their 
habits,  manners  and  customs.  Beside  the 
Esquimaux,  who  are  generally  a  diminutive 
race,  and  of  peaceful  habits,  there  is  another 
tribe  who  inhabit  the  more  northerly  portions 
of  the  continent,  and  are  often  at  war  with 
the  Esquimaux.  They  are  called  the  moun- 
taineers, or  northern  Indians. 

The  northern  Indians  are  rather  above  the 
middle  stature,  and  well  proportioned.  Their 
foreheads  are  low,  eyes  small,  noses  aquiline, 
high  cheek  bones,  their  cheeks  fleshy,  and 
chins  long  and  broad.  Their  complexion  is 
of  brown,  inclining  to  a  dingy  copper  color. 
They  subsist  chiefly  on  venison,  and  gener- 
ally spend  the  whole  summer  in  hunting  the 
deer,  or  catching  fish  in  the  rivers  or  lakes. 
As  they  have  no  dogs  like  the  Esquimaux, 
and  seldom  any  powder  and  ball,  they  make 
use  of  their  bows  and  arrows  in  killing  the 
deer  while  passing  through  the  narrow  defiles 
of  the  mountains.  The  women  and  chil- 
dren not  unfrequently  unite  with  them  in 


AND    NEWFOtNDLAND. 


131 


their  hunting  expeditions.  In  fishing,  which 
is  a  favorite  employment,  they  use  hooks  and 
nets  at  all  seasons  of  the  year.  Their  nets 
are  made  of  thongs  cut  from  raw  deer  skinsj 
and  are  Airnished  with  various  appendages^ 
isuch  as  the  bills  and  feet  of  birds,  the  toes  and 
jaws  of  otters,  &c.  which  are  esteemed  es- 
sential to  their  success.  These  nets  are  al- 
ways used  separately^  and  at  a  great  distance 
from  each  other,  and  on  no  account  would 
they  unite  for  the  purpose  of  stretching  across 
the  channel  of  a  narrow  river,  because  they 
say  one  net  would  become  jealous  of  anoth- 
ier,  and  would  not  catch  a  single  fish.  In 
fishing  with  baits,  they  are  equally  supersti- 
tious, and  all  the  baits  which  they  use  are 
compositions  of  charms,  enclosed  within  a 
piece  of  fish  skin,  so  as  to  resemble  a  small 
fish.  These  charms  are  bits  of  beaver's  tails, 
otter's  teeth,  muskrat's  entrails,  curdled  milk, 
human  hair,  &,c. ;  and  almost  every  lake  and 
river  is  supposed  to  require  a  pecuUar  combi- 
nation of  different  articles.  They  often  eat 
their  food  in  a  raw  state,  and  frequently  from 
choice,  especially  in  the  case  of  fish,  which 
they  seldom  dress  so  far  as  to  warm  it  thor- 
oughly.    They  often  pull  out  the  kidneys  of 

i3 


mi> 


128 


FIVE    MONTHS    IN    LABRADOR 


'if 


f;j:;-h 


tr 


if::: 


newly  slaughtered  deer  or  buffalo,  and  eat 
them  warm  without  dressing.  They  drink 
the  blood  as  it  flows  from  the  wound  in  the 
carcase,  and  account  it  a  most  nourishing  de- 
scription of  food. 

The  clothing  of  these  Indians  consists 
chiefly  of  the  skins  of  deer,  with  the  hair  in-^ 
wards ;  but  for  summer  months,  they  use  a 
fine  soft  leather,  prepared  from  the  skins  of 
these  animals.  The  women  of  this  tribe  are 
more  the  slaves  than  companions  of  the  men. 
They  possess  little  beauty  even  in  youth,  and 
become  old  and  wrinkled  before  they  reach 
the'  age  of  thirty.  But  they  are  generally 
chaste,  mild  and  obliging  creatures,  making 
even  in  their  degraded  condition,  the  most 
faithful  servants,  affectionate  wives,  and  in- 
dulgent mothers.  Among  these  Indians  a 
plurality  of  wives  is  common.  Every  man 
takes  as  many  as  he  is  able  to  maintain :  and 
there  are  often  six  or  eight  in  one  family. 
These  are  changed,  or  increased  in  number, 
at  the  pleasure  of  the  husband.  No  cere- 
monies attend  their  marriages  or  divorces. 
When  the  husband  suspects  any  one  of  his 
wives  of  incontinency,  or  is  not  pleased  with 
her  accomplishments,  he  gives  her  a  sound 


AND    NEWFOUNDLAND. 


129 


beating  and  turns  her  out  of  doors,  telling 
her  to  go  to  her  lover,  or  relations,  as  the 
case  may  be.  It  is  also  a  daily  occurrence 
among  them  to  take  by  force  the  wives  of 
others  whom  they  may  happen  to  fancy ;  and 
all  that  is  necessary  to  decide  the  claim,  is  to 
vanquish  the  former  husband  in  wrestling. 
On  these  occasions,  the  by-standers  never  at- 
tempt to  interfere  ;  nor  will  one  brother  even 
offer  to  assist  another,  except  by  giving  his 
advice  aloud,  which  being  equally  heard,may 
be  equally  followed  by  both  the  parties  en* 
gaged.  When  one  of  them  falls,  or  yields, 
the  other  is  entitled  to  carry  off  the  woman, 
who  was  the  cause  of  the  contention.  It  is 
a  common  custom  among  them  to  exchange 
wives  for  a  time,  as  one  of  the  strongest  ties 
of  friendship  between  two  families ;  and  in 
case  of  the  death  of  either  husband,  the  oth- 
er considers  himself  bound  to  support  the 
children  of  the  deceased. 

Their  doctors  are  a  class  of  conjurers,  who 
impose  upon  the  credulity  of  their  patients ; 
while  they  really  seem  to  believe  in  the  effi- 
cacy of  their  own  operations.  These  con- 
jurers profess  to  accomplish  their  cures  by 
the  aid  of  certain  spirits  or  fairies,with  whom 


130 


F^IVE    MONTHS    IN    LABRADOR 


h  'i 


h  y 


n 


1^1 


■-■M 


«  I 


they  pretend  to  converse,  and  whom  they  of- 
ten describe  as  appearing  to  them  under  the 
shapes  of  beasts,  birds,  clouds,  <fcc.  They 
are  supposed  to  be  equally  able,  by  means  of 
these  supernatural  allies,  to  take  away  as  well 
as  to  prolong  any  one's  life  ;  and  when  they 
choose  to  threaten  such  a  malign  influence, 
to  any  individual,  or  family,  the  imaginations 
of  their  victims  are  so  possessed  by  the  con- 
viction of  their  power,that  the  consequence  is 
affirmed  to  have  often  proved  fatal.  Indeed, 
when  any  of  their  principal  people  die,  their 
death,  in  whatever  way  it  has  taken  place,  is 
usually  ascribed  to  some  conjuring  influence, 
either  of  their  own  countrymen,  or  of  the  Es- 
quimaux. 

They  never  bury  their  dead,  but  leive  the 
bodies  on  the  spot  where  they  expire.  They 
are  understood  to  be  generally  devoured  by 
wild  beasts  and  birds  of  prey  ;  and  probably 
for  this  reason,  the  natives  will  neve  eat  the 
flesh  of  foxes,  wolves,  ravens,  &c.  unless 
pressed  by  necessity.  The  greatest  calamity 
that  can  befal  one  of  these  Indians,  is  old  age 
or  helplessness.  When  any  one  is  incapable 
to  labor,  he  is  treated  with  the  greatest  neg- 
lect, and  when  he  becomes  too  feeble  to  move 


AND    NEWFOUNDLAND. 


lai 


from  place  to  place,  is  abandoned  to  perish 
of  want.  This  custom  is  so  general  that  it 
is  said  one  half  of  the  aged  people  of  both 
sexes  die  in  this  miserable  manner. 

The  notions  which  these  Indians  entertain 
in  religion  are  so  extremely  vague  and  limit- 
ed, that  they  may  almost  be  said  to  have  no 
ideas  at  all  on  that  subject.     With  regard  to 
the  origin  of  the  world,  they  have  a  tradition, 
that  the  first  person  on  earth  was  a  woman, 
who,  after  wandering  sometime  alone,  found 
an  animal  like  a  dog,  which  followed  her  to 
the  cave  where  she  lived,  and  transforming 
itself  in  the  night  time  into  the  shape  of  a 
handsome  youth,  rendered  her  the  mother  of 
a  family.     Some  time  afterwards,  a  person  of 
such  gigantic  stature  as  to  reach  the  clouds 
with  his  head,  came  to  level  the  land,  which 
had  been  hitherto  a  confused  heap,  and  this 
he  effected  merely  with  the  help  of  his  walk- 
ing stick,  marking  out,  at  the  same  time,  the 
lakes,  ponds  and  rivers.     He  then  took  the 
dog,  and  tearing  it  in  pieces,  threw  its  intes- 
tines into  the  waters,  commanding  them  to 
become  fishes  ;  dispersed  its  flesh   over  the 
land,  with  a  similar  charge  to  form  the  dif- 
ferent kinds  of  beasts ;  threw  pieces  of  itg 


m 


132 


FIVE    MONTHS    IN    LABRADOR 


I'   V 


K  '::ii 


■l< 


11 

J 


i\ 


t 


skin  in  the  air,  to  give  origin  to  the  feathered 
tribes  ;  commanded  the  woman  and  her  off- 
spring to  kill,  eat,  and  never  spare,  as  he  had 
charged  these  creatures  to  multiply  for  her 
use ;  and  then  returning  to  the  place  whence 
he  came,  has  never  been  heard  of  since. 
They  believe  in  the  existence  of  several  kinds 
of  spirits,  whom  they  suppose  to  inhabit  the 
different  elements,  and  to  whose  influence 
they  attribute  every  change  in  their  lot,wheth- 
er  favorable  or  adverse.  They  have  no  fix- 
ed creed,  however,  in  these  matters  ;  but  are 
continually  receiving  new  fables  from  their 
conjurers,  who  profess  to  receive  intimations 
in  dreams  from  these  invisible  beings.  They 
have  no  practical  religious  observances  what- 
ever, except  perhaps  the  speaking  with  rev- 
erence of  certain  beasts  and  birds,  in  which 
they  suppose  these  spirits  reside. 

These  Indians  are  not  a  warlike  people, 
and  notwithstanding  their  total  want  of  hu- 
manity towards  their  aged  and  suffering  rel- 
atives, they  are  scarcely  ever  known  to  en- 
gage in  any  deadly  quarrels  amongst  them- 
selves, and  are  not  inclined  to  acts  of  cruelty 
except  towards  the  Esquimaux,  whom  they 
seem  to  regard  as  a  common  enemy. 


AND    NEWFOUNDLAND. 


133 


The  Esquimaux  Indians  of  Labrador,  re- 
semble the  Lapps  and  Samoides  of  Europe, 
as  well  as  the  Greenlanders.  It  is  not  only 
in  Labrador  that  this  race  is  found,  but  they 
are  thinly  scattered  along  the  coast,  from  the 
Gulf  of  St.  Lawrence  to  the  shores  of  the 
Arctic  Sea,  and  thence  westward  to  Behring's 
Strait.  These  people  are  distinguished  from 
the  Aiiierican  Indians,  by  their  sallow  com^ 
plexions,  thick  bushy  beards,  low  stature  and 
feeble  constitution.  Their  name  is  said  to 
imply  eaters  of  raw  flesh.  They  have  flat 
countenances,  short  noses,  black  coarse  hair, 
and  remarkably  small  hands  and  feet.  They 
differ  from  the  more  inland  natives,  in  having 
beards,  whereas  those  other  tribes  have  no 
hair  on  any  part  of  their  bodies  except  the 
head.  They  are  very  dextrous  in  hunting 
and  fishing,  particularly  in  catching  and  kill- 
ing seals,  which  are  of  the  utmost  importance 
to  them  :  ihe  flesh  supplies  them  with  food  ; 
the  fat  furnishes  oil  for  lamp  light  and  kitch- 
en fire,  and  is  also  used  as  sauce  for  their 
fish.  The  oil  is  also  bartered  with  the  fac- 
tors for  all  kinds  of  necessaries.  With  the 
fibres  and  sinews  of  the  seal,  they  can  sew 
better  than  with  thread  or  silk.     Of  the  en^ 


i  Hi 


134 


FIVE    MONTHS    IN    LABRADOR 


Is    >i 


trails  they  make  their  windows,  shirts,  and 
the  bladders  which  they  use  with  their  har- 
poons. Even  the  blood,  boiled  with  other 
ingredients,  is  eaten  as  soup.  Formerly,  for 
want  of  iron,  the  bones  of  the  seal  were  man- 
ufactured into  all  kinds  of  instruments  and 
working  tools  ;  and  the  skin  is  still  used  for 
clothing,  and  for  covering  their  boats  and 
tents,  as  well  as  for  many  other  purposes. 

The  clothing  of  the  Esquimaux  is  compos- 
ed of  the  skins  of  rein-deer,  seal,  and  some 
kinds  of  birds,  sewed  together  with  the  sin- 
ews of  the  rein-deer,  seal  or  whale,  split  so 
thin  as  to  be  adapted  to  the  finest  steel  nee- 
dles ;  and  with  these  they  execute  their  work 
with  great  neatness  and  ingenuity.  The  un- 
der garment,  or  shirt,  is  made  of  the  skins  of 
fowls,  with  the  feathers  inwards,  or  some- 
times of  the  skin  of  the  rein-deer.  Over 
this  shirt,  the  more  wealthy  among  them 
wear  another  garment  of  fine  haired  deer 
skin;  but  as  this  article  is  now  extremely 
scarce,  the  common  people  substitute  seal 
skins,  with  the  rough  side  outwards,  the  bor- 
ders and  seams  being  ornamented  with  nar- 
row strips  of  red  leather  and  white  dog-skin. 
Seal-skins   are   likewise  manufactured  into 


AND    NEWFOUNDLAND. 


135 


ts,  and 
eir  har- 
h  other 
erly,  for 
re  man- 
nts  and 
ised  for 
ats  and 
OSes, 
compos- 
id  some 
the  sin- 
,  split  so 
eel  nee- 
sir  work 
rhe  un- 
skins  of 
•  some- 
Over 
them 
3d  deer 
:tremely 
ite  seal 
the  bor- 
nih  nar- 
og-skin. 
ed   into 


or 

3 


drawers,  stockings  and  shoes  ;  generally  rath- 
er clumsily  made,  but  answering  the  purpose 
of  protecting  the  feet  from  the  cold.  The 
outer  garment  usually  reaches  about  half-way 
down  the  thigh,  and  is  sewed  round  like  a 
wagoner's  frock,  though  neither  so  long  nor 
so  loose.  On  the  top  of  this  is  fastened  a 
cap,  or  hood,  to  be  drawn  over  the  head  as  a 
defence  against  wet  and  cold.  When  they 
travel  by  sea,  a  great  coat,  made  of  a  black 
smooth  seal's  hide,  rendered  water-proof ,  cov- 
ers the  rest  of  the  dress. 

The  only  difference  of  the  women's  dress 
from  that  of  the  men,  is  that  the  jacket  of 
the  former  has  high  shoulders  and  a  hood 
still  higher :  it  is  not  cut  round  at  the  bottom, 
but  forms,  before  and  behind,  a  long  flap,the 
pointed  extremity  of  which  reaches  a  httle 
below  the  knee.  The  boots  and  shoes  of  the 
women  are  of  dressed  skins,  with  the  seams 
neatly  sewed  and  figured.  Mothers  and  nur- 
ses put  on  a  garment  wide  enough  in  the 
back  to  hold  a  child,  which  is  sometimes 
placed  therein  quite  naked,  and  kept  from 
dropping  through  by  means  of  a  girdle  fas- 
tened about  the  woman's  waist.  This  is  the 
only  kind  of  swaddling  clothes,  or  cradle, 


136 


FIVE    MONTHS    IN    LABRADOR 


^3 

;         H 

■l 

)                  '   ''  '     ■ 

!         .      , 

,i 

;t    J 

1 

■ 

!■                          ,    . 

!' 


H.' 


with  which  the  infant  Esquimaux  is  accom- 
modated. Some  of  these  people  contrive  to 
keep  their  garments  neat  and  clean — but  gen- 
erally their  ordinary  dress  abounds  in  filth 
and  vermin,  and  exhales  an  odor  so  noxious, 
that  an  European  is  always  glad  to  keep  to 
the  windward  of  them. 

They  are  in  general  a  timorous  people,and 
strike  their  brdasts,  in  token  of  peace,  when 
they  approach  strangers.  Their  dwelUngs  in 
winter  resemble  Caves,  or  holes,  dug  in  the 
earth ;  and  though  generally  comprising  but 
one  apartment,  it  is  not  un frequently  occupi- 
ed by  several  relatives,  with  their  wives  and 
children.  In  summer,  they  frequently  shift 
their  abodes ;  and  then  live  under  tents,made 
of  skins  stretched  upon  poles  stuck  in  the 
earth,  and  dra^  /n  at  top  into  a  conical  shape. 
They  keep  a  great  number  of  dogs,  which 
guard  their  habitations,  and  draw  their  sledg- 
es. Occasionally  their  dogs  are  used  for  food, 
and  their  skins  converted  into  clothing.  But 
the  greatest  luxury  of  an  Esquimaux  is  seal 
blubber,  which  he  devours  with  avidity,  and 
to  excess. 

They  all  practice  polygamy,  but  their  ^«»t<- 
ilies  are  not  generally  numerous.     The  wives 


AND   NEWFOUNDLAND. 


137 


I  accorn- 
►ntrive  to 
-but  gen- 
;  in  filth 
noxious, 
)  keep  to 

30ple,and 
ce,  when 
sellings  in 
[g  in  the 
rising  but 
;y  occupi- 
^ives  and 
ntly  shift 
2nts,made 
;k  in   the 
jal  shape. 
gs,  which 
leir  sledg- 
d  for  food, 
ing.    But 
,ux  is  seal 
iditv,  and 

their  ^^^i- 
rhe  wives 


live  together  very  harmoniously,  are  continu- 
ally at  work,  and  sew  very  neatly  with  the 
sinews  of  the  deer.  They  indeed  have  all 
the  labor  to  perform,  except  procuring  food. 
The  husbands  are  strangers  to  jealousy,  al- 
though they  have  frequent  occasion  to  doubt 
the  continency  of  their  wives.  They  have  no 
government,  or  laws  ;  and  no  other  punish- 
ment for  the  most  detestable  crimes  than  gen- 
eral censure.  No  man  is  held  superior  to 
another,except  in  as  far  as  he  excels  in  strength 
or  courage,  or  in  the  number  of  his  family. 
They  are  in  general  a  harmless  people,  not 
apt  to  steal  from  one  another,  or  to  give  way 
to  violent  anger:  but  they  are  sufficiently 
harsh  to  the  poor  women  when  they  happen 
to  give  offence. 

The  Esquimaux,  whom  Capt.  Parry  found 
about  the  Melville  Peninsula,  to  the  north  of 
Hudson's  Bay,  dwelt  in  dome  shaped  huts 
built  of  frozen  snow,  the  approach  to  which 
was  through  low  passages  of  the  same  mate- 
rial. Thus  snow,  the  chief  product  of  the 
northern  tempests,  becomes  to  these  people 
their  protection  against  its  own  cold.  This 
frozen  material  is  formed  into  curved  slabs  of 
*r«bout  two  feet  long  and  half  a  foot  thick,  put 

K 


:    i 


138 


FIVE    MONTHS    IN    LABIIADOK 


W  1 


together  so  neatly  as  to  present  a  species  of 
dome,  rising  six  or  eight  feet  from  the  ground, 
and  fourteen  or  sixteen  feet  in  diameter. 
Their  mode  of  inserting  the  key  slab,  which 
binds  the  whole  together,  would  be  satisfac- 
tory to  the  eye  of  the  regularly-bred  artist. 
A  plate  of  ice  is  placed  in  the  roof  as  a  win- 
dow, which  admits  the  light  as  through 
ground  glass.  In  each  room  of  the  habita- 
tion, suspended  from  the  roof,  burns  a  lamp, 
with  a  long  wick  formed  of  a  peculiar  species 
of  moss,  fed  with  the  oil  of  the  seal  or  the 
walrus,  and  serving  at  once  for  light,  heat  and 
cookery.  The  family  sit  round  the  apart- 
ment, on  a  bench  formed  of  snow,  strewed 
with  slender  twigs  and  covered  with  skins  ; 
but  this  part  of  the  dweUing  must  be  careful- 
ly kept  a  good  deal  below  the  freezing  point, 
since  a  higher  temperature  would  speedily 
dissolve  the  walls  of  the  frail  tenement. 

These  Indians  show  very  little  prudence  in 
the  management  of  their  supplies.  The  in- 
stant that  tidings  transpire  of  the  capture  of 
a  walrus,  or  other  favorite  delicacy,  shouts  of 
exultation  are  raised  through  the  village,  as 
the  inhabitants  all  share  the  prize  in  common. 
On  its  arrival,  slices  are  instantly  cut  out,  ev- 


AND    NEWFOUNDLAND. 


139 


ery  lamp  is  supplied  with  oil,  the  houses  are 
in  a  blaze ;  all  the  pc*s  are  filled  with  flesh, 
and  the  women,  while  cooking,  fish  out  and 
devour  the  daintiest  morsels.  The  feast  pre- 
pared, one  man  takes  up  a  large  piece,  ap- 
plies it  to  his  mouth,  and  severs  with  his  teeth 
as  much  as  that  cavity  can  possibly  admit ; 
then  hands  it  to  his  neighbor,  and  he  to  the 
next,  till  all  is  consumed.  A  new  piece  is 
then  supplied,  and  thus  the  process  contin- 
ues, almost  without  intermission,  till  the  ani- 
mal is  entirely  consumed. 

Considered  as  to  their  intellectual  condi- 
tion, the  Esquimaux  have  not  the  least  tinc- 
ture of  what  goes  by  the  name  of  learning  ; 
can  form  no  abstract  ideas ;  and  none  of  them 
can  count  above  ten,  the  number  of  their  fin- 
gers. Yet  we  have  noticed  their  skill  in  the 
construction  of  their  habitations,  as  well  as 
in  the  pursuit  and  destruction  of  the  various 
tenants  of  the  earth  and  water,  on  which  their 
subsistence  depends. 

The  religious  ideas  of  the  Esquimaux, 
though  they  cannot  be  dignified  with  any 
better  name  than  superstition,  are  not  much 
more  absurd  than  the  popular  creed  of  the 
ancient  Greeks  and  Romans.     Their  princi- 


140 


FIVE     MONTHS    IN    LABRADOR 


i   ' 


l! 

■  'i 


pal  deity  is  represented  as  a  female,  immense- 
ly tall,  with  only  the  left  eye,  wearing  a  pig- 
tail reaching  down  to  the  knee,  and  so  thick 
that  it  can  scarcely  be  grasped  with  both 
hands.  This  divinity  has  for  her  father  a  gi- 
ant having  one  arm.  They  also  believe  in  a 
tutelary  spirit,  frequently  invoked,  and  in  a 
huge  bear,  whose  dweUing  is  in  the  middle 
of  the  polar  ice,  and  who  frequently  holds 
converse  with  mankind.  The  natives  also 
believe  in  a  future  world,  the  employments 
and  pleasures  of  which,  according  to  the  usu- 
al creed  of  all  savage  races,  are  all  sensual. 
The  soul,  they  say, descends  beneath  the  earth 
through  successive  abodes,  the  first  of  which 
has  somewhat  the  nature  of  purgatory ;  but 
such  spirits  as  are  good,  easily  find  their  way 
through  it,  and  arrive  at  other  mansions  more 
delightful,  until  they  arrive  at  that  of  perfect 
bliss,  far  beneath,  where  the  sun  never  sets, 
and  where,  by  the  side  of  large  lakes  that 
never  freeze,  the  deer  roam  in  vast  herds,and 
the  seal  and  the  walrus  always  abound  in  the 
waters. 

In  Franklin's  Account  of  the  Polar  Re- 
gions, it  is  mentioned,  that  a  very  old  man 
among  the  Esquimaux  Indians,  on  beholding 


!!f 


nmense- 
ig  a  pig- 
so  thick 
^ith  both 
her  a  gi- 
ieve  in  a 
md  in  a 
e  middle 
tly  holds 
ives  also 
)loyments 
0  the  usu- 
il  sensual. 
J  the  earth 
of  which 
tory;  but 
their  way 
ons  more 
f  perfect 
|ever  sets, 
kes  that 
erds,and 
nd  in  the 

^olar  Re- 
old  man 
beholding 


1 


AND    NEWFOUNDLAND. 


141 


for  (he  first  time  his  face  in  a  mirror,  started 
back  with  the  wildest  emotions  of  surprise 
and  horror.  This  incident,  so  characteristic 
of  the  general  intellect  of  the  race,  is  thus 
finely  illustrated  by  one  of  the  most  gifted  of 
American  writers,  Mrs.  Sigourney : — 

Thou  nameless  wanderer,  old  and  gray  , 

Why  flees  the  life  blood  from  thy  heart, 
When  first  that  strange,  reflected  ray, 
Reveals  thy  features'wrinkled  chart? 

See'st  thou  the  steps  of  years  gone  by, 
Dark  years  of  roaming  want  and  care  ? 

Their  image  in  thy  sunken  eye  ? 

Their  snows  amid  thy  scatter'd  hair  ? 

Thou  see*st,  alas,  what  all  must  trace, 
Who  linger  long  on  time's  cold  tide, 

The  wreck  of  vigor,  health  and  grace, 
Which  youth  so  fondly  hopes  to  hide. 

One  glass  there  is,  and  one  alone. 

Which  paints  with  radiance  pure  and  free, 

Man's  victory  o'er  the  latest  groan ; 
But  who  shall  hold  that  glass  to  thee  ? 

Say,  who  shall  bid  those  eyes,  that  stream 
To  mark  thy  withering,  wasting  clay, 

Exult  to  see  its  loop-holes  beam  '    • 

With  lustre  of  eternal  day  ? 

To  the  christian  philanthropist,  the  coast 
of  Labrador  presents  an  interesting  field  of 
labor.  Here  amid  our  northern  seas,  and 
within   reach  of  benevolent  enterprise,    are 

lI 


142 


FIVE    MONTHS    IN   LABRADOR 


■:| 


<f 


*       V 


I,     I 


MW'^  '■ 


hundreds  and  thousands  of  souls,  perishing 
for  want  of  religious  and  moral  culture.  Tru- 
ly the  harvest  is  plenteous,  but  the  laborers 
are  few.  While  our  missionaries  are  carrying 
the  glad  tidings  of  salvation  through  the  Re- 
deemer,tG  the  farthrest  India,  and  the  savage 
isles  of  the  South,I  cannot  but  hope  that  the 
attention  of  New-England  christians  will  be 
ere  long  directed  to  the  coast  of  Labrador 
and  the  islands  of  the  North.  Thousands  of 
New-England  fishermen  yearly  frequent  these 
shores,  where  never  the  sound  of  the  church 
going  bell  is  heard,  and  where  few  of  the  in- 
habitants ever  witnessed  the  keeping  of  a 
Sabbath.  Once  while  there  I  had  the  satisfac- 
tion of  attending  an  exercise  of  reading  the 
scriptures.  While  we  lay  in  Red  bay,  an  En- 
glish vessel  of  war  came  in,  and  remained 
over  one  sabbath.  Glad  of  the  opportunity,  I 
went  on  board,  and  attended  the  usual  ser- 
vices of  the  established  or  episcopal  church. 
An  interesting  discourse  was  read,  and  I  was 
struck  with  the  perfect  order  and  attention 
of  officers  and  crew,  and  could  not  help  con- 
trasting their  happy  lot  with  that  of  the  in- 
habitants of  the  coast. 

But  I  must  hasten  to  a  conclusion. 


AND    NEWFOUNDLAND. 


143 


CHAPTER  VIII. 


Preparation  for  return  to  Yankee  land. —  Gale  at  sea. — An- 
chorage at  Boone  Bay. — St.  John's  islands  :  natural  curi- 
osity, known  as  "  Jacob's  Well." — Departure. — Storm.— 
Arrival  at  Gabarus  bay  in  Breton  island. — Sydney. — De- 
scription of  the  ancient  fortress  of  Louisbourg  5  its  present 
desolation. — Departure  from  the  bay.— Arrival  at  tlie^'home 
of  the  Pilgrims." — Conclusion. 

The  great  object  of  our  voyage  having  been 
accomplished,  at  the  beginning  of  September 
we  set  about  preparations  for  the  homeward 
passage.  Our  little  vessel  was  put  in  trim, 
and  all  things  snugly  stowed  away  in  their 
appropriate  places,  when  we  hoisted  sail,  on 
the  6th  September,  for  "  home,  sweet  home !" 
It  may  well  be  supposed  that  this  was  a  sea- 
son, of  rejoicing  and  merry  hearts  to  most  of 
us  ;  particularly  so  to  our  cabin-boy,  whom  I 
had  often  heard  say,  with  tears  in  his  eyes, 
"  I  wish  I  could  see  mother  l"  The  little  fel- 
low was  full  of  Hfe  and  animation,  seeming 
almost  to  realize  in  anticipation  the  fond 
meeting  of  parent  and  child,  of  brothers  and 
listers,  long  separated. 


I 'I 


144 


FIVE    MOIVTHS    IN    LABRADOR 


fi    .f 


-i' ; 


i  ;■»;■ 


if 


The  third  day  after  our  departure,  having 
had  two  days  of  pleasant  saihng  with  slight 
breezes,  a  gale  sprung  up  from  the  northwest, 
which  increased  during  the  day  and  night. 
Our  vessel  was  heavy  laden,  and  at  times  the 
main  deck  would  be  under  water.  It  became 
necessary  at  length  to  disencumber  the  deck  of 
some  of  the  oil  butts,  and  cut  a  hole  through 
the  side  just  above  the  scuppers,  in  order  to 
free  the  deck  of  water.  The  storm  con- 
tinued until  the  ne^t  day  at  noon.  We  lost 
the  jib,  carried  away  by  the  wind,  the  fore- 
mast was  sprung,  and  we  had  to  take  in  the 
fore-sail,  and  double  reef  the  main-sail.  The 
wind  was  now  directly  aft,  and  the  shores  of 
Newfoundland  beginning  to  heave  in  sight, 
we  were  in  hopes  of  reaching  a  harbor  before 
another  night  closed  in  upon  us.  Toward 
sunset  the  winds  abated,  but  the  sea  was 
rough ;  however,  we  succeeded  late  in  the 
evening  in  reaching  Boone  bay,  the  first  har- 
bor we  made  at  Newfoundland  on  our  pas- 
sage out.  We  were  heartily  glad  to  find  good 
anchorage,  and  opportunity  for  repairs. 

In  calm  weather,  the  fishermen  sometimes 
call  at  St.  Johns'  islands  on  the  west  coast 
of  Newfoundland.     They  are  composed  of 


AND    NEWFOUNDLAND. 


145 


having 

slight 
thwest, 
I  night, 
mes  the 
became 
deck  of 
through 
mier  to 
rm  con- 
We  lost 
le  fore- 
e  in  the 
1.     The 
hores  of 
in  sight, 
^r  before 
Toward 
sea  was 

in  the 
irst  har- 
our  pas- 
nd  good 

s. 
etimes 

st  coast 

osed  of 


barren  rocks,  and  are  sought  as  places  for 
curing  fish.  There  is,  as  the  captain  of  our 
vessel  informed  me,  a  remarkable  natural  cu- 
riosity, on  one  of  these  rocks,  called  "Jacob's 
Well.''  It  is  a  circular  excavation  through 
the  rock,  from  six  to  eight  feet  in  diameter, 
and  about  sixty  feet  in  depth.  Its  walls  are 
as  straight  as  if  cut  with  an  auger,  perfectly 
round,  and  smooth  as  if  wrought  by  the  hand 
of  an  artist.  Stooping  and  placing  the  ear 
near  the  margin  of  the  well,  the  listener  hears 
sounds  which  he  at  first  supposes  to  be  of 
some  stringed  instrument,  varying  in  tones, 
and  soft  as  that  of  the  harp.  These  sounds 
are  produced  by  drops  of  water  issuing  from 
the  sides  of  the  well,  and  falling  into  the 
depths  below.  Visiters  sometimes  spend  hours 
in  listening  to  this  strange  music,  and  to  the 
loud  rumbling  cavernous  noises,  which  are 
produced  by  throwing  handfulls  of  pebbles 
into  this  singular  well. 

After  repairing  our  little  craft,  we  again 
put  out  to  sea  ;  and  about  sunset  on  the  sec- 
ond day  out  from  our  last  anchorage,  we  en- 
countered another  gale  more  tempestuous 
than  the  former.  But  the  captain  of  the  Al- 
fred was  an  experienced  seaman,  and  the 

l2 


5  ' 


146 


FIVE    MONTHS    IN    LABRADOR 


•.i 


i;.. 


i  ■ 


I 


crew  attentive  to  their  whole  duty  on  board. 
The  gale  continued  for  two  days,  during  which 
at  times,  we  had  fears  of  being  overwhelmed, 
ar:d  some  of  the  older  sailors  began  to  ex- 
press the  belief  that  our  little  bark  would  find 
a  hard  bottom  in  the  gulf.  But  Providence 
ordered  otherwise.  We  were  now  driving 
along  the  gulf  of  St.  Lawrence,  and  the 
winds  somewhat  abated,  we  next  met  with 
the  fogs  that  hover  over  these  waters.  An- 
other source  of  anxiety  now  pressed  upon 
our  minds.  We  were  nearing  St.  Paul's  is- 
land, situated  about  midway  between  Cape 
Gregory  of  Newfoundland  and  the  north 
point  of  Cape  Breton.  Thib  island  has  a 
rocky  and  precipitous  shore,  dangerous  to  ap- 
proach, and  upon  which  several  vessels  have 
been  wrecked  during  storms,  or  in  the  midst 
of  the  fogs.  We  watched,  however,  and 
kept  a  steady  look  out,  until  the  danger  was 
happily  past,  and  we  made  safe  anchorage  in 
the  noble  bay  of  Gabarus,  about  one  mile 
westerly  of  the  ancient  city  of  Louisbourg,on 
Cape  Breton.  It  seemed  somewhat  like  again 
entering  one's  own  country,  to  step  upon  the 
shores  of  Cape  Breton.  The  marks  of  hus- 
bandry, of  cultivation,  of  fertile  fields,  and 


i 


AND    NEWFOUNDLAND. 


147 


rich  pastures  were  seen  as  we  approached  the 
shores.  Flocks  and  herds  were  also  noticed 
in  the  distance,  and  served  to  increase  the  in- 
terest we  felt  in  this  renowned  island  depen- 
dency of  Great  Britain. 

Cape  Breton,  from  its  situation,  forming 
the  eastern  barrier  of  the  Gulf  of  St.  Law- 
rence, and  commanding  the  access  from  the 
Atlantic,  from  the  earliest  date  was  regarded 
as  the  key  to  the  Canadas.  Any  naval  pow- 
er in  possession  of  it,  provided  as  it  is  with 
good  harbors,  will  be  arbiter  of  the  commerce 
of  Canada,  and  the  coasts  bordering  the  St. 
Lawrence  Gulf.  The  whole  circuit  of  the 
island  of  Cape  Breton  is  275  miles.  The 
principal  harbors  are  those  of  Sydney,  Lou- 
isbourg,  St.  Anne's, and  the  Great  Bras  d'Or. 
As  we  sailed  along  the  coast,  we  noticed  the 
buildings  and  improvements  at  Sydney ,which 
is  regarded  as  one  of  the  finest  harbors  in  the 
British  provinces.  The  surrounding  land  is 
a  fine  agricultural  tract,  the  advantages  for 
carrying  on  the  fishery  excellent,  its  trade  is 
opened  to  all  parts  of  the  globe,  by  its  late 
admission  to  the  number  of  free  ports ;  and 
the  materials  for  prosecuting  that  trade  are  to 
bo  found  abundant,  in  the  prime  articles  of 

3 


li' 


^ 


9 

i5 


l?l 


r48 


FIVE    MONTHS    II*   LABHi-DOR 


0 


coals,  fish,  timber  and  agricultural  produce* 
Notwithstanding  these  natural  advantages^ 
the  tide  of  fortune  has  not  vet  set  towards 
Sydney,  and  it  appears,  like  Louisbourg,  to 
be  neglected  for  places  that  cannot  vie  with 
it  in  natural  capabilities.  Sydney  at  present 
contains  seventy  or  eighty  houses,  and  a  pop- 
ulation of  about  five  hundred  souls.  The 
streets  are  regularly  laid  out,  the  private  hou- 
ses in  general  well  built,  the  grounds  in  the 
vicinity  are  cultivated  with  some  taste,  and 
the  whole,  being  interspersed  with  gardens, 
filled  with  fruit  trees,  presents  a  very  pleasing 
appearance. 

The  entrance  of  Louisbourg  harbor  is 
pointed  out  to  voyagers  arriving  fron>  the 
eastward,  by  the  ruins  of  the  light-house,  on 
the  bold  rocky  tvall  of  the  northern  shore  ; 
a  few  minutes  after  approaching  which,  the 
mariner  shoots  from  a  fretful  sea  into  a  smooth 
and  capacious  harbor.  On  entering,  the  gen- 
eral view  is  that  of  a  spacious  but  not  very 
sheltered  port,  the  latter  appearance  being 
occasioned  by  the  depression  of  the  bar  on 
the  western  side,  which  does  not  show  above 
the  water,  and  produces  in  the  beholder  a 
feeling  of  insecurity  from  that  quarter.     The 


AND    NEWFOUNDLAND. 


140 


prdspect  seen  before  arriving  at  the  northeast 
arm  of  the  harbor,  may  be  said  to  be  tame. 
Here  the  rugged  and  perpendicular  rocks, 
proceeding  from  the  north  side  of  the  en- 
trance, are  succeeded  by  irregular  hills,inter- 
spersed  with  groves  of  fir  trees,  and  clothed 
with  a  few  huts  on  the  steep  declivities  next 
the  harbor,  conferring  on  this  retired  and 
sheltered  arm  a  picturesque,  but  rather  gloomy 
air.  The  surrounding  land  is  evidently  poor, 
in  every  j^art  of  Louisbourg,  and  the  country 
seats  and  gar-  ?ns  of  the  French  colonists, 
must  have  bv'  created  at  great  labor  and 
expense.  The  country  rises  with  a  pretty 
quick  ascent  towards  the  interior  ;  and  a  mile 
or  two  from  the  water,  the  quality  of  the  soil 
improves  greatly,  affording  timber  and  vege- 
tation altogether  different  from  the  produc- 
tions of  the  shores. 

Upon  a  neck  of  land  on  the  south  side  of 
the  h}irbor,stood  the  ancient  fortress  and  town 
of  Louisbourg.  It  was  environed,  two  miles 
and  a  half  in  circumference,  with  a  rampart 
of  stone  from  thirty  to  thirty-six  feet  high, 
and  a  ditch  eighty  feet  wide,  with  the  excep- 
tion of  a  space  of  two  hundred  yards  near 
the  sea,  which  was  enclosed  by  a  dyke  and  a 


i  ii 


150 


FIVE    MONTHS    IN    LABRADOR 


i: 


'i^; !  f:*^  .r. 


^, 


line  of  pickets.  The  watef  in  this  place  was 
shallow,  and  numerous  reefe  rendered  it  in- 
accessible to  shipping,  while  itr  received  an 
additional  protection  from  the  side  fire  of  the 
bastions.  There  were  six  bastions  and  eight 
batteries,  containing  embrasures  for  one  hun- 
dred and  forty-eight  cannon.  On  an  island, 
at  the  entrance  of  the  harbor,  was  planted  a 
battery  of  thirty  cannon  ;  and  at  the  bottom 
of  the  harbor,  was  the  grand  or  royal  battery 
of  twenty-eight  forty-two  pounders.  On  a 
high  cliff  opposite  to  the  island  battery  ,stood 
the  light-house  ;  and  within  this  point,  at  the 
northeast  part  of  the  harbor,  was  a  careening 
wharf,  secure  from  all  winds,  and  a  magazine 
of  naval  stores. 

The  town  was  regularly  laid  out  in  squares. 
The  streets  were  broard,  the  houses  mostly 
of  wood,  but  some  of  stone.  On  the  west 
side,  near  the  rampart,  was  a  spacious  cit- 
adel, and  a  large  parade,  on  one  side  of  which 
were  the  governor's  apartments.  Under  the 
ramparts  were  casements  to  receive  the  wo- 
men and  children  during  a  siege.  The  en- 
trance of  the  town  on  the  land  side  was  at 
the  west  gate,  over  a  draw  bridge,  near 
which  was  a  circular  battery,  mounting  sixteen 


i,  1 


AND    NEWFOUNDLAND. 


151 


guns.  The  works  had  been  twenty-five  years 
in  building,  at  the  time  of  their  reduction  by 
the  English  in  1745,  and  cost  the  crown  of 
France  not  less  than  thirty  millions  of  livres. 
The  place  was  considered  so  strong  as  to  have 
obtained  the  name  of  the  Dunkirk  of  America. 

The  historian  of  New-Hampshire,  Dr.  Bel- 
knap, has  given  a  very  interesting  account  of 
the  capture  of  this  place  by  the  troops  under 
Sir  William  Pepperell  and  Com.  Warren  in 
1745.  The  English  however  surrendered  it  to 
the  French,  under  the  treaty  of  peace  in  1749 ; 
but  again  look  it  in  1758,  when  the  fortifica- 
tions were  dismantled,  and  this  large  to  wo, 
then  numbering  over  four  thousand  inhabi- 
tants, has  since  become  almost  a  scene  of  des- 
olation. 

The  ancient  walls  display  even  yet  the 
most  attractive  object  to  the  eye.  The  contour 
of  these  ruined  mounds  is  boldly  marked 
against  the  sky  on  the  left,  as  the  straiger 
proceeds  into  port, there  being  no  higher  land 
in  that  direction,  and  prompts  inquiry,  and 
induces  a  visit  to  the  spot  where  Louisbourg 
once  existed.  The  site  of  the  town  is  formed 
by  the  harbor  and  the  ocean.  Both  in  the 
harbor  and  on  the  sea  side,  the  land  is  nearly 


i   '1 


!    i 

i 


152 


FIVE    MONTHS    IN    LABRADOR 


even  with  the  water,  and  gently  rises  to  the 
eminence  around  by  the  now  ruined  bastians 
stretching  from  shore  to  shore,  and  thus  cut- 
ting off  the  site  of  Louisbourg  from  the  ad- 
jacent country.  Immediately  in  the  rear  ex- 
tends a  wide  spreading  bog,  intersected  by 
natural  ditches,  in  the  summer  season  over- 
spread with  yellow  aquatic  lilies.  The  town 
being  thus  situated,  the  few  straggling  dwel- 
lings of  the  fishermen  now  resident  there, 
backed  by  the  range  of  mounds,  are  the  first 
objects  perceived  by  a  voyager  from  the  west- 
ward, even  before  entering  the  harbor. 

Arriving  on  the  area  of  the  French  city,  it 
is  fouad  to  be  every  where  spread  with  a 
mantle  of  turf,  and  without  the  assistance  of 
a  native,  it  is  not  easy  to  discover  the  founda- 
tions even  of  the  public  buildings.  Two  or 
three  casements  yet  invite  inspection,  appear- 
ing like  the  mouth  of  huge  ovens,  surmounted 
by  great  masses  of  earth  and  sod.  These 
caverns,  originally  the  safe-guards  of  powder 
and  other  combustible  munitions  of  war,  now 
serve  to  shelter  the  flocks  of  sheep  that  feed 
upon  the  ruins.  The  floors  '^  rendered 
nearly  impassable,by  the  ordurr  of  these  ani- 
mals, but  the  vaulted  ceilings  ne  adorned  by 


AND    NEWFOUNDLAND. 


153 


dependent  stalactites,  like  icicles  in  shape, 
but  not  in  purity  of  color  or  of  substance, 
being  of  a  material  somewhat  resembling 
oyster  shells.  The  mass  of  stone  and  brick 
that  composed  the  buildings  of  Louisbourg, 
and  which  is  now  swept  so  completely  from 
its  site,  has  been  carried  away  to  build  up 
other  places. 

The  remains  of  the  different  batteries  on 
the  island  and  round  the  harbor,  are  still 
shown  by  the  inhabitants,  as  well  as  of  the 
wharves,  stockade,  and  sunken  ships  of  war. 
On  gaining  the  walls  above  the  town,  they 
are  found  to  consist  of  a  range  of  earthern 
fortifications,  with  projecting  angles,  and  ex- 
tending as  already  mentioned  from  the  har- 
bor to  the  sea,  interrupted  at  intervals  by 
large  pits,  said  to  have  been  produced  by  the 
efforts  of  the  captors  to  blow  up  the  walls. 
From  these  heights  the  glacis  slopes  away  to 
the  edge  of  the  bog  outside,  forming  a  beau- 
tiful level  walk,  though  now  only  enjoyed  by 
the  sheep,  being,  Uke  the  walls,  carpeted  by 
short  turf. 

The  prospect  from  the  brow  of  the  dilapi- 
dated ramparts,  is  one  of  the  most  impressive 
that  the  place  affor^^s.     Looking  to  the  souths 


I 


154 


FIVE    MONTHS    IN    LABRADOR 


1. 


.1 


'M 


\)     v^-|'i%riv 


t 

il   ■  1 


east,  over  the  former  city,  the  eye  wanders 
upon  the  interminable  ocean,  its  bhie  rolling 
waves  occupying  three  fourths  of  the  scene, 
and  beyond  them,  on  the  verge  of  the  hori- 
zon, a  dense  bank  of  fog  sweeps  along  with 
the  prevailing  wind,  precluding  all  hope  of 
discerning  any  vista  beyond  that  curtain. 
Turning  landwards,  towards  the  southwest, 
over  the  spacious  bog  that  lies  at  the  foot  of 
the  walls,  the  sight  is  met  by  a  range  of  low 
wood  in  the  direction  of  Gabarus,  and  can 
penetrate  no  farther.  The  harbor  is  the  only 
prospect  to  the  northward,  and  immediately 
in  its  rear  the^land  rises  so  as  to  prevent  any 
more  distant  view,  and  even  the  harbor  ap- 
pears dwindled  to  a  miniature  of  itself,  being 
seen  in  the  same  picture  with  the  mighty 
ocean  that  nearly  surrounds  the  beholder. 
The  character  of  the  whole  scene  is  melan- 
choly, presenting  the  memorials  of  for- 
mer life  and  population,  contrasted  with  its 
present  apparent  isolation  from  the  nations 
of  the  earth.  The  impression  is  not  weak- 
ened by  the  sight  of  the  few  miserable  huts 
scattered  along  the  shores  of  the  port,  and  the 
little  fishitng  vessels,  scarcely  perceptiMe  in 
the  mountain  swell  of  the  ocean.     They 


AND    NEWFOUNDLAND. 


165 


vanders 
I  rolling 
e  scene, 
the  bori- 
ng with 
hope  of 
curtain, 
uthwest, 
J  foot  of 
e  of  low 
and  can 
the  only 
nediately 
jvent  any 
rbor  ap- 
elf,  being 

mighty 

beholder. 

is  melan- 

of     for- 

with  its 
le  nations 
not  weak- 
rable  huts 
t,  and  the 
eptiUe  ifl 
n.     They 


serve  but  to  recall  the  images  of  the  elegant 
edifices  that  once  graced  the  foreground, and 
of  the  proud  flags  that  once  waved  upon  the 
face  of  that  heaving  deep.  Most  truly  is  it 
remarked  by  the  historian  of  Nova  Scotia, 
that  the  fatality  that  hangs  over  places  of  fal- 
len celebrity,  seems  to  press  heavily  upon  this 
once  valued  spot. 

In  no  spot  of  the  British  possessions,  in 
the  north,  did  I  feel  so  great  an  interest  a» 
in  the  ruins  of  the  once  powerful  fortress  of 

>uisbourg ;  and  I  trust  my  readers  will  not 
be  uninterested  in  the  brief  notices  which  I 
have  here  given  of  its  former  grandeur,  and 
present  desolation.  After  leaving  this  place, 
I  had  little  opportunity  of  observing  any 
thing  worthy  of  note.  We  remained  at  Cape 
Breton  four  days,  when  we  again  trimmed 
our  sails  for  home,  and,  after  encountering 
and  safely  weathering  the  great  gale  of  the 
seventh  of  October,  during  which  so  many 
fishermen  were  wrecked,  we  made  Plymouth 
light  in  the  evening  of  the  8th,  and  on  the 
9th  of  October,  were  safely  moored  in  Plym- 
outh harbor.  Those  who  have  been  out  even 
"  five  months"  at  sea,  will  well  understand 
the  gratification  with  which  we  again  stepped 


1 1 


■Hv 


156 


FIVE    MONTHS    IN    LABRADOR. 


upon  the  loved  shores  of   free   and   happy 
New-England. 


i 


.•i 


■  i 
-  It 


I  have  thus,  in  a  brief,  and,  I  am  aware, 
imperfect  manner,  given  a  summary  of  the 
scenes  and  scenery  that  passed  under  my  ob- 
servation during  a  five  months'  absence  in 
Newfoundland  and  Labrador.  My  object 
has  been  to  present  such  facts  concerning 
those  bleak  and  inhospitable  regions,  and  in 
relation  to  the  manners,  customs,  and  modes 
of  life  of  the  inhabitants,  as  will  enable  the 
reader  to  understand  their  true  condition. 
How  far  I  may  have  succeeded,  is  of  course 
left  to  the  candid  consideration  of  the  read- 
er ;  and  if,  in  addition,  I  have  offered  any 
amusement  to  those  who  have  devoted  a  leis- 
ure hour  to  my  unpretending  narrative,  my 
object  will  be  attained.  ' 


■■R 


V 


i 


happy 


aware, 
\f  of  the 
r  my  ob- 
sence  in 
y   object 
ncerning 
,  and   in 
id  modes 
nable  the 
ondition, 
)f  course 
the  read- 
Fered  any 
ed  a  leis' 
ative,  my 


